"Face My Fears"
Cover art by Tetsuya Nomura.
Single by Hikaru Utada and Skrillex
from the album Bad Mode
LanguageJapanese, English
ReleasedJanuary 18, 2019
Recorded2017–2018
GenreFuture bass
Length3:42
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Skrillex
Hikaru Utada singles chronology
"Chikai"
(2018) 		"Face My Fears"
(2019) 		"Time"
(2020)
Skrillex singles chronology
"Agen Wida"
(2018) 		"Face My Fears"
(2019) 		"Warlordz"
(2019)
Music video
"Face My Fears (Japanese Version)" on YouTube

"Face My Fears" is a song by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada and American record producer Skrillex, released on January 18, 2019, by Epic Records Japan. Along with its English-language counterpart, it serves as the opening theme song to the Square Enix video game Kingdom Hearts III. It was written as a collaboration between Utada, producer Skrillex, and R&B songwriter Poo Bear.[1]

The song was released in both English and Japanese versions, alongside "Chikai" (which was previously released in her seventh Japanese album Hatsukoi) and its English counterpart, "Don't Think Twice", as a CD single on January 18, 2019, making it her first release on the format in eleven years since her 2008 single "Prisoner of Love". It is also her first release with original English songs since "This Is the One" in 2009.[2]

Composition

Utada requested that the producer Skrillex produce a remix of the song "Chikai" for Kingdom Hearts III, since it was known that he was a fan of the game. He proposed to instead make a completely new song. Utada agreed to collaborate with him and songwriter Poo Bear to write the song.[3]

The song was written in the same key as "Passion", to make it easier for Skrillex to mix both songs during his concerts. The song also has the same chords as "Dearly Beloved", the recurring musical theme for the main menu in the Kingdom Hearts series.[4]

Commercial performance

The song topped China's Kugou New Song chart and 8 digital download services in Japan.[5]

In Japan, the single debuted at the sixth spot of the Oricon Weekly Singles chart with 12,732 copies sold on its first week of release,[6] as well as debuting at number three of the Oricon Combined Singles chart with 33,462 equivalent units.[7] Moreover, The Japanese version of "Face My Fears" debuted at the fourth spot of the Oricon Weekly Digital Singles chart with 14,686 downloads.[8]

The song debuted at number 98 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week dated February 2, 2019, giving Utada her first Hot 100 entry.[9] The song sold 10,000 pure downloads and had 2.5 million streams in the first week in the US.[10]

Track listing

Japanese release
No.TitleLength
1."Face My Fears" (Japanese version)3:42
2."Chikai"4:34
3."Face My Fears" (English version)3:42
4."Don't Think Twice"4:34
International release[11]
No.TitleLength
1."Face My Fears" (English version)3:42
2."Don't Think Twice"4:34
3."Face My Fears" (Japanese version)3:42
4."Chikai"4:34

Personnel

Credits adapted from Youtube Music

Charts

Release history

Region Date Format Label
Various January 18, 2019 CD single
Digital download
Streaming
March 6, 2019 12-inch single (Japan)
March 29, 2019 12-inch single (US)

References

  1. ^ Romano, Sal (September 28, 2018). "Kingdom Hearts III opening theme song a collaboration between Skrillex and Hikaru Utada". Gematsu. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  2. ^ "宇多田ヒカル、11年ぶりシングルCD発売決定 Skrillexと『キングダムハーツIII』OP制作". Oricon. 31 October 2018.
  3. ^ "Hikaru Utada's "Face My Fears" Co-written With Skrillex Announced As Opening Theme For Game "KINGDOM HEARTS III"". Hikaru Utada Official Website. September 28, 2018. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
  4. ^ "Face My Fears written in the same key as Kingdom Hearts II's Passion; contains the same chords as Dearly Beloved". KH13.com. January 21, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  5. ^ "ニューシングル「Face My Fears」が過去最高の国・地域でランクイン！". Hikaru Utada Official Website (in Japanese). January 21, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Oricon Weekly Singles Chart" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  7. ^ "2019年01月14日～2019年01月20日 オリコン週間 合算シングルランキング". ORICON NEWS. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  8. ^ "オリコン週間 デジタルシングル（単曲）ランキング 2019年01月14日～2019年01月20日". ORICON NEWS. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  9. ^ a b "Hikaru Utada Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
  10. ^ "James Blake Debuts at No. 1 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  11. ^ "Face My Fears - EP by Hikaru Utada". Apple Music. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  12. ^ "Le Top de la semaine: Top Singles Téléchargés (Week 4, 2019)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. January 25, 2019. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  13. ^ "Oricon Daily Singles Chart" (in Japanese). Oricon. January 17, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  14. ^ "Oricon Daily Digital Singles Chart" (in Japanese). Oricon. January 18, 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
  15. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot 100 2018/2/4". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved January 30, 2019.
  16. ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. January 28, 2019. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  17. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  18. ^ "UK Official Charts". Official Charts Company. January 25, 2019. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  19. ^ "Hikaru Utada Chart History (Hot Dance/Electronic Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
  20. ^ "Hikaru Utada Scores First Hot 100 Hit With Skrillex Collaboration 'Face My Fears'". Billboard. Retrieved January 30, 2019.
  21. ^ "Hot Dance/Electronic Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  22. ^ "World Digital Song Sales - 2019". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 23, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
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