# Fear (EP)
**Fear** (stylized in all caps) is a six-song extended play by the Michigan rapper and producer NF ([Nathan Feuerstein](https://www.edgepedia.org/nf-rapper)), released on November 14, 2025 through NF Real Music LLC and Capitol Music Group. It is his first collection of new music since his 2023 album *HOPE* and features guest appearances from mgk and [James Arthur](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-arthur).[1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/) • [2](https://music.apple.com/us/album/fear-ep/1848272861)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Artist | NF (Nathan Feuerstein), a rapper and producer from Gladwin, Michigan[2](https://music.apple.com/us/album/fear-ep/1848272861) • [3](https://legendswillneverdie.com/2025/11/14/nf-fear-review/) |
| Released | November 14, 2025, via NF Real Music LLC / Capitol Music Group[1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/) |
| Length and format | Six songs, about 21 minutes[4](https://jesusfreakhideout.com/cdreviews/FearEP.asp) |
| Producers | Jeff Sojka, NF, and Aaron Chafin[5](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/1520690-nf-fear.php) |
| Guest features | mgk on "WHO I WAS"; James Arthur on "SORRY"[1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/) |
| Context | First new music since the April 2023 album *HOPE*, which topped Billboard's Top Album Sales, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and Top Rap Albums charts and reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200[1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/) |
| Genres | Pop rap, folk pop, singer-songwriter, emo rap, alt-pop, and conscious hip hop, per aggregated listings[5](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/1520690-nf-fear.php) |
## Background and release
NF built his following through a run of introspective albums: *Mansion* (2015), *Therapy Session*, *Perception*, *The Search*, the mixtape *Clouds*, and *HOPE* (2023).[6](https://goodstarvibes.com/ep-review-nf-fear-music-mgk-james-arthur/) • [3](https://legendswillneverdie.com/2025/11/14/nf-fear-review/) *FEAR* arrived as his first new music since *HOPE*, released on vinyl, signed CD, digital download, and streaming.[1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/)
Anticipation ran unusually high for a short release. In the two weeks before it dropped, combined views of the EP's teaser videos surpassed 22 million, and one widely repeated report, cited by the reviewer [Anthony Fantano](https://www.edgepedia.org/anthony-fantano), held that the project set a record for Spotify saves among rap projects.[1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/) • [7](https://rosetta.to/u/theneedledrop/nf-fear-ep-review)
## Songs and collaborations
The EP opens with the self-produced title track, in which NF describes his obsessive-compulsive disorder being worse than ever, asks God whether the fire in his life was started by Him, and weighs intrusive thoughts against the progress he made on *HOPE*. The song's lyrics reference his earlier albums *Mansion*, *Perception*, and *HOPE*, tying it to the narrative thread of his catalog.[6](https://goodstarvibes.com/ep-review-nf-fear-music-mgk-james-arthur/) • [3](https://legendswillneverdie.com/2025/11/14/nf-fear-review/) The full track list, with durations, runs:[4](https://jesusfreakhideout.com/cdreviews/FearEP.asp)
1. FEAR (4:29)
2. HOME (4:44)
3. WHO I WAS, with mgk (3:01)
4. GIVE ME A REASON (3:03)
5. SORRY, with James Arthur (3:12)
6. WASHED UP (3:19)
Two high-profile collaborations widen the EP's scope. "WHO I WAS" marks mgk returning to rap, over imagery of everything the two artists care for burning in front of them; "SORRY" pairs NF with the British singer-songwriter James Arthur in a pop-rap crossover in which both apologize to former partners.[6](https://goodstarvibes.com/ep-review-nf-fear-music-mgk-james-arthur/) • [3](https://legendswillneverdie.com/2025/11/14/nf-fear-review/) Elsewhere, "GIVE ME A REASON" considers what the hustle and struggle felt like, and the closer "WASHED UP" returns to a more negative mindset than the one *HOPE* ended on.[3](https://legendswillneverdie.com/2025/11/14/nf-fear-review/)
## Artwork and videos
**Continuing imagery.** The EP's cover shows a stately structure set aflame, calling back to the burning-house-in-the-mind symbolism of NF's 2015 debut *Mansion*, whose cover depicted the mansion representing his mind. Reviewers and the label both noted that the rollout deliberately hearkened back to earlier songs, albums, and videos.[6](https://goodstarvibes.com/ep-review-nf-fear-music-mgk-james-arthur/) • [1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/)
Official videos for the title track and the closing song "WASHED UP" premiered on release day. The "FEAR" video dramatizes NF's dialogue with mental health: dressed in a white tracksuit and cap to symbolize hope, he is confronted by dark figures representing intrusive thoughts, is consumed by flames inside a church, and the final scene snaps back to him collapsed at home as a figure in black quietly takes his keys.[1](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/) • [6](https://goodstarvibes.com/ep-review-nf-fear-music-mgk-james-arthur/)
## Critical reception
Reviews diverged sharply. On the aggregator Album of The Year, *FEAR* holds a critic score of 45 based on two reviews and a user score of 36 based on 1,110 ratings.[5](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/1520690-nf-fear.php) Matt Collar of AllMusic rated it 80, calling it "an EP that often feels bigger and more emotionally intense than many full-length albums"; Fantano's The Needle Drop rated it 10, describing it as "pop singer-songwriter slop" on which NF "plays to his strengths even less".[5](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/1520690-nf-fear.php)
Other critics framed the EP around its style shift and its fan-facing narrative. The Legends Will Never Die review scored it 1.5 out of 5, reading it as an attempt to move toward singer-songwriter material with elements of conscious hip hop, pop rap, and folk pop, with decent but unremarkable production and lyrics the reviewer found corny.[3](https://legendswillneverdie.com/2025/11/14/nf-fear-review/) Stanisland characterized the record as pop music in rap clothing and argued that the title track continues the fear-versus-hope storyline of NF's earlier albums while the remaining songs are ones he had been fearful to release.[8](https://stanisland.com/nf-fear-ep-review/) Good Star Vibes took the opposite view, praising the emotional transparency, the symbolic callbacks, and the cinematic music videos.[6](https://goodstarvibes.com/ep-review-nf-fear-music-mgk-james-arthur/)
## References
1. [NF's FEAR EP – First New Music Since the Chart-Topping 2023 Album HOPE – Out Today, Universal Music Canada (November 14, 2025)](https://www.universalmusic.ca/2025/11/14/nfs-fear-ep-first-new-music-since-the-chart-topping-2023-album-hope-out-today/)
2. [FEAR – EP, Album by NF, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/fear-ep/1848272861)
3. [ИF – "Fear" review, Legends Will Never Die (November 14, 2025)](https://legendswillneverdie.com/2025/11/14/nf-fear-review/)
4. [NF, "Fear – EP" Review, Jesusfreakhideout](https://jesusfreakhideout.com/cdreviews/FearEP.asp)
5. [NF – FEAR (EP), Album of The Year](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/1520690-nf-fear.php)
6. [EP Review: NF's "FEAR" Explores a Raw and Vulnerable New Chapter With mgk and James Arthur, Good Star Vibes (November 20, 2025)](https://goodstarvibes.com/ep-review-nf-fear-music-mgk-james-arthur/)
7. [NF – Fear EP Review, The Needle Drop (Rosetta)](https://rosetta.to/u/theneedledrop/nf-fear-ep-review)
8. ['Fear': NF's Latest is Pop Music In Rap Clothing, Stanisland Magazine](https://stanisland.com/nf-fear-ep-review/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Albums and recorded releases › EPs, mixtapes, and short-form releases › Hip-hop mixtapes*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license