Leave it to Jung Kook to unleash a deliciously catchy late entry into this year’s Song of the Summer race. For his first solo release of the year, the BTS member has joined forces with Grammy-nominated “Lottery” rapper Latto. Titled “Seven,” the new collaboration is an acoustic guitar and garage-inflected ode to endless rounds of sex seven days a week. Who needs a break?

Co-produced by Watt and Cirkut with songwriting contributions from Jon Bellion, “Seven” is a meticulously crafted pop smash that actually rises above how surgical pop songs can feel with so many crafty cooks in the kitchen. Most of the credit goes to Jung Kook and his smooth voice. His falsetto is packed with character, at times flirty, sometimes cheeky, but always confidently playing with the melody as he switches from unfussy riffs to a quicker rap-sung cadence. He’s a suave performer, and that essence is all over “Seven.”

Latto’s verse is a homerun. Her pen game is as strong as ever, once again proving her versatility across genres. Just a few months after putting the rest of the game on notice with the Cardi B-assisted “Put It On Da Floor Again,” Latto reminds us that she can skate over a pop beat just as effortlessly. In just two lines, she emphasizes the 777 jackpot imagery she adopted post-name change while also calling back to the success of her “Fantasy”-tinged smash hit “Big Energy.” “Seven days a week, seven different sheets / Seven different angles, I can be your fantasy,” she spits.

“Seven” is quite an explicit song. Jung Kook is cussing up and down the chorus, a departure from BTS’ extremely clean radio singles. While sex and expletives don’t necessarily equate to maturity, the decision to veer in a different direction from his group, both lyrically and conceptually, is a smart one. Already poised for a massive chart debut, “Seven” could make a last-minute case for 2023’s Song of the Summer, and maybe even stick around into the fall.

Vote for Jung Kook and Latto at the 2023 Bulletin Awards.

Score: 70