Sam Damshenas of Gay Times described it as 'incredibly catchy and addictive'. He also praised the guitar loop, calling it 'a nice touch on a beat that is fairly sparse, and at times, nonexistent', writing that 'it helps this song stand out among the hundreds of other similar tracks'. He called the production 'a natural progression' for Khalid and something 'not far from Normani's comfort zone'. Nina Braca of Billboard wrote a positive review of the song, saying: 'The romantically curious lyrics perfectly compliment Normani's smooth vocals over a simple guitar riff and slow pop beat.' Hugh McIntyre of Fuse deemed the song 'a laid-back R&B affair so mature it's difficult to believe the artists behind it are so young and still just getting started in their respective careers'. This is definitely growing process and I can't wait. 'Being in the studio and partnering with Khalid, it actually tells me more about myself that I didn't necessarily know was even there. 'I feel like people are actually getting like a sense of who I actually am,' she said. Normani spoke to Zane Lowe on his Beats 1 radio show about the song, saying that recording it was a 'growing process' for her. The two artists also teased a few lyrics from the song, with Khalid replying Normani's announcement with 'tell me where your love lies', to which Normani replied: 'waste the day and spend the night'. Similarly, Khalid posted the single artwork with the same caption.

On February 12, 2018, Normani posted a photograph of her and Khalid, captioning the photo: '2/14'. The duet was officially announced on January 16, 2018.

We're in two different countries on tour but we still text each other sometimes like, 'but that record though.''.

But the greatest part of it all is that were genuinely two friends that created something special that we're so proud of. I remember him telling me 'I want this to be my favorite record, if I were listening, I want it to be something I vibe with that's just dope,' which is something I relate to because I listen to our song every day. We wanted to create something that our peers would fall in love with. We actually got into the studio and we're excited about a record we wrote together along with Taylor Parks.

She divulged to Kode in an interview in October 2017, when asked to share information on the collaboration: 'Khalid and I have been wanting to work together for some time. Later, Normani confirmed to Billboard that they were working together on collaboration ideas, calling him 'an important artist and a great friend'. Khalid also opened up about the collaboration during an interview with MTV News the next month. Normani first hinted at a possible collaboration between her and Khalid via an Instagram post in July 2017.

Khalid normani love lies album