"Hands Up" is a song recorded by Japanese boy group NCT Wish, the Japanese-based unit of boy group NCT, who were then promoting as NCT New Team. It was released as the group's pre-debut single digitally on October 8, 2023, and was released physically on December 20, 2023, to support the group's pre-debut showcase tour in late 2023 ahead of their debut in 2024. The single additionally contains the B-side track "We Go!". A music video for "Hands Up" was released on October 19.
On February 3, 2023, SM Entertainment revealed plans to debut a Japanese unit for NCT, then dubbed NCT Tokyo, to debut later in the year. The official lineup, put together via the reality show NCT: Lastart, was revealed on September 7, 2023, as NCT New Team.
The group held their first performance on September 9 and 10 as the opening act for NCT at NCT Nation: To the World, where they debuted the song "Hands Up." In October 2023, it was announced that the group would be releasing a pre-debut single on October 8, consisting of the songs "Hands Up" and "We Go".
A Korean version of the song was later included as the seventh track of the group's first EP Steady, released on September 24, 2024.
On the day of the album's release, the group began a pre-debut tour, which consisted of 28 performances across 10 cities in Japan.