A dramatic, slow-tempo pop ballad, the song was produced by BTS-bandmate Suga, who co-wrote it with El Capitxn, Maria Marcus, Louise Frick Sveen, Gabriel Brandes, Matt Thomson and Max Lynedoch Graham of Arcades, and Shin Won Park.

Having "the freedom to explore melodies", they "tried to play on the existing sense of melancholy and drama" Suga had created "to find something that would complement it."

He came up with the lyrics during a flight to the United States—it was one of two songs he wrote while on the plane, the other being "Girl of My Dreams"—for BTS' Permission to Dance on Stage concerts in Los Angeles.

Wanting to directly reference the webtoon, Suga read its synopsis and the first four chapters, reviewed some of the artwork sketches, and imagined the song as if it were a soundtrack for an animation while writing.

[3][5] The lyrics are a direct complement to the webtoon's storyline and the struggle of the main characters—seven boys—"as they try to survive in a vicious [corrupt] world" while having to "overcome numerous hardships and trials".

"[7] After returning to South Korea, following the end of BTS' concerts in LA, Jungkook recorded the vocal track on his own, utilizing "self-harmonies and airy transitions" to emphasize the song's "heart wrenching" lyrics.

Though initially concerned about the key of the song when he wrote it, and whether the chorus and verses would be too high or too low, the producer liked Jungkook's first take so much that he felt a second session was unnecessary and submitted it immediately after mixing.

[9] A domestic promotional event was held from January 15 to February 5 for Korean subscribers of the webtoon who purchased early access to its first three episodes.

[2] "Stay Alive" entered the week seven issue of South Korea's Gaon Digital Chart, for the period dated February 6–12, 2022, at number 80.

The single debuted at number 95 on the chart issue postdated February 26, 2022, with 2.9 million cumulative streams and 14,900 downloads sold in its first week.

He is the fourth member of BTS to enter the global ranking and the highest-charting; bandmate V previously charted at number 43 with "Christmas Tree" in January.

[27] The music video for "Stay Alive" was preceded by the release of a 17-second long teaser clip shared across various social media platforms on January 31, 2022.