Back in November 2025, RIIZE made their comeback with their second single album, Fame, which featured the title track of the same name. Unfortunately, I was unable to review the track at that time. But as the saying goes, better late than never. Before Fame, RIIZE also returned earlier in 2025 with the studio album Odyssey (yet to be reviewed) and the title track Fly Up.

Fame tackles hip-hop once again, with the song described as ‘rage hip-hop’. While it isn’t the usual style of music I would listen to (the primary reason I have taken a while to review this track), I do appreciate the combination of rage beats and rhythm, hip-hop influences, and the shrillness of the electric guitar (though this did get much at times). The resulting instrumental features robustness that makes the song bold, while the electric guitars brought an alternative-esque influence to Fame. On the vocal front, it was solid all around. I liked the amount of vocals you got in Fame, in comparison to rapping. It felt balanced and well-rounded. I liked the emotional heft RIIZE poured into Fame, and that you also get out of the song. I also liked their control against the paced nature of the song. The rapping in this song was also pretty good, especially the lower register spoken parts. Stronger hooks and melodies would have reinforced the song. I know it isn’t common, especially in hip-hop songs, but Fame needed something memorable to hold my attention and bring me back for more.

Fame explores the desire for love and emotion over fame and fortune. I think the video explores two sides of each member, even though they are one person. One side is the ‘fame’ version of the group. We see them on screen, on the sound stage, and in front of the cameras in the video, though this version is portrayed as quite suffocating (very close shots of their faces, cameras right into their personal space, in a closed room, performing while their surroundings are on fire). The other side is the ‘behind the scenes’ version of RIIZE that we see for the majority of the video – they perform on the big spinning platform, and they appear to be in rehearsals (based on the more casual outfits). This side is allowed to explore those emotions and the idea of love. In the end, it appears that the desire for love and emotion prevails, as the small room off the side of their spinning platform, where we see the fame version of the members in some scenes, explodes.

The performance for Fame is pretty good. While it was an intense routine, I liked how it complemented the song’s pacing. The best part has to be the outro/dance break we get at the end of the performance. The way the members came at us was peak intensity.

Song – 8/10
Music Video – 9/10
Performance – 9/10
Overall Rating – 8.5/10