Shedding light on the mysterious and exciting teaser released by A.C.E at the start of 2021, DJ Steve Aoki announced that the upcoming project is a "Fav Boyz" release, set for January 8.
The iconic DJ and multimedia personality shared a 20-second teaser featuring him and his beats, ending in a poster of "FAV BOYZ - Steve Aoki's Gold Star Remix Feat. Thutmose." Sending the K-Pop and electronic music scenes into a frenzy, Aoki's January 5 tweet read: "This one's from ur Fav Boyz!! I teamed up with @official_ACE7 for my latest remix. It's Steve Aoki's Gold Star remix comin this Fri #ACE #FavBoyz."
This one's from ur Fav Boyz!! I teamed up with @official_ACE7 for my latest remix. It's Steve Aoki's Gold Star remix 🌟🌟 comin this Fri 👀 #ACE #FavBoyz pic.twitter.com/CGwjYsVfv1
— Steve Aoki (@steveaoki) January 5, 2021
On the same day, A.C.E also made the announcement across its SNS channels. On Instagram, they reposted the same mysterious cover art on January 5, but this time, the nine-image collage now includes a flight of blue transparent butterflies and the "FAV BOYZ Steve Aoki's Gold Star Remix" inscribed below.
Additionally, the collaborative project between the Beat Interactive boy group and the celebrity DJ has been hinted at as a three-track release: the first being "Fav Boyz (Steve Aoki's Gold Star Remix)," followed by the lead track "Fav Boyz (feat. Thutmose) [Steve Aoki's Gold Star Remix]," and an instrumental version of the track. The Steve Aoki-backed project is the first release after Billboard announced that A.C.E has signed up with Asian Agent for US management and global strategy.
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A.C.E's "Favorite Boys"
Steve Aoki's highly-anticipated "Gold Star Remix" for "Fav Boyz" is taken from the A.C.E single "Favorite Boys (Goblin)," the lead single from their fourth studio album "HJZM: The Butterfly Phantasy," released on September 2, 2020. Their fourth album has exploded into the group's best-performing release to date - being a commercial success and a critically-acclaimed work for the group. The album, together with A.C.E, has been included in year-end K-Pop lists from various international publications - including Dazed, Rolling Stone India, MTV, Teen Vogue, and more.
Writing for Rolling Stone India, Riddhi Chakraborty described the music video for "Favorite Boys" as doing a "brilliant job of making clear" its album's exploration of existentialist themes. Overall, Chakraborty noted for the MV: "A.C.E deliver outstanding displays of fashion, makeup and choreography, presenting androgynous, modern yet mystical interpretations of various characters from Asian history or mythology."
On the other hand, online lifestyle portal Don't Bore Us from The Brag Media calls "Favorite Boys" a "cornucopia of rock, hip-hop, and synths, but brining it to endearing perfection is the confidence that rings through every part of the song." Its writers also hailed the song as a tribute to the group's "own homegrown rhythm," and praising it for pulling audiences into its own world.
About Steve Aoki
Steve Aoki is an American DJ, record producer, and music executive who has worked with internationally-recognized acts such as Afrojack, will.i.am, Linkin Park, Iggy Azalea, BTS, MONSTA X, and more. Aside from his own works, he is also known for his remixes of popular hits. Aside from his collaboration with other artists, Aoki has also released Billboard-charting albums, most notable of which is his 2012 EDM album "Wonderland," which received a Grammy Award nomination for the Best Dance/ Electronica Album in 2013.
The highly-anticipated collaboration between Steve Aoki and A.C.E is set to be released this Friday, January 8, at 2 PM KST and 12:00 MN EST. Watch the music video for the track that inspired their team-up below:
