How Ateez’s ‘NASA’ Became the Ultimate B-Side

Most of the time, the lead single of an album is the star, but every once in a while, a B-side comes along and fully takes over. Take “NASA,” for example, a secondary track on Ateez’s 13th EP, Golden Hour: Part 4, which steals the spotlight from its title track, “Adrenaline,” despite it being a solid, high-energy opener. Expanding on the Golden Hour series’ theme of life’s defining moments, “NASA” catapults the idea into space, telling us that for Ateez, the “golden hour” could be a fleeting moment on earth while also being an infinite journey. And you don’t just feel that “limitless” vibe in the lyrics — the music itself builds into something massive.

Musically, “NASA” offers an exhilarating experience while remaining surprisingly cohesive. It’s got a bit of everything: gritty industrial hip-hop, glitchy electronic beats, and these huge, cinematic swells that make it feel like a movie soundtrack. After an eerie, metallic intro that seems to be mimicking a spacecraft’s ignition, the track pivots into a deep, daring, and dark sound that hits even harder than “Adrenaline.” In fact, what makes it interesting is how unpredictable the song is. While most hits follow a predictable path, “NASA” deviates to the left, layering sounds so well that each time you listen to it, you notice something new. It’s a complex production for sure, a dense, glitch-hop fever dream that uses textured distortion to mirror the chaos of deep space. But there’s a sense of play with which Ateez approaches it, turning “NASA” into something that hits home.

The song becomes larger than life with each of the band members — Hongjoong, Seonghwa, Yunho, Yeosang, San, Mingi, Wooyoung, and Jongho— adding their distinct energies. It finds a perfect equilibrium between staccato, rhythmic rap verses and a layer of moody vocals that coat the song in a haunting sense of tension. Once the chorus breaks, you’re hit with that signature Ateez intensity. The whole song builds up to that “Shoot for the stars like NASA” line, essentially a shout-out to their “sky’s the limit” attitude. Their chemistry does the main magic here; it turns “NASA” into a cinematic journey, bridging the mechanical intro with the sudden energy switch of the EDM climax, with plenty of emotional highs in between.

The song’s performance video is full of attitude, and looks exactly the way the song sounds. Instead of the usual bright colors and flashiness, it’s got a super sleek, high-contrast look — mostly crisp whites and metallic silvers against a dark background. Ateez also mixes flowy dance moves and brilliant body rolls with this cool orbiting layout and a cooler hook step that becomes a major draw, while the backup dancers further take things up a notch.

But it’s the lyrics that tie everything together. The rest of the Golden Hour album series explores how the never-ending hustle and the challenges of growing older can hinder us from achieving our ultimate dreams. But “NASA” focuses on making a mark that lasts. It shows that Ateez has evolved and come a long way, currently heading into the unknown. It’s captured perfectly in the lines, “I fly so higher than the sky / We go / Up to outer space…” By the time the song ends, you understand that “NASA” is the moment when the compass breaks and Ateez trades the ocean for outer space, showing that they’ll shine the brightest when there’s no atmosphere to hold them back.