The title track was released as the lead single to a generally negative critical reception, with Blender naming it the ninth worst song of all time.

According to biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli, the presence of Ritchie in Madonna's life had a calming effect on the singer, making her more matured and easing her temper.

[3] When Madonna started working on her ninth studio album, American Life, she wanted answers to her queries and an appropriate response to the 9/11 disaster and the ensuing Iraq war of 2003.

[5][6] In an interview with VH1 titled Madonna Speaks, the singer discussed her 20 years in the music industry, and revealed her motivations behind American Life, about "material things" being unimportant.

[4] When Madonna started writing the songs on the album, she was inspired by different situations, like having guitar lessons and getting an idea, or sometimes Ahmadzaï would send over a rough demo to her without the basic chord progression.

[4] Madonna also remembered Ahmadzaï's downbeat existentialism regarding the condition of society around them, and the long discussions they had into the night, which ultimately reflected into the songwriting as anxiety they felt in their heart.

[3] American Life was deemed by some as a concept album featuring political themes based around the United States, with Madonna explaining that she felt "like America has changed over the years and that a lot of our values seem to be materially oriented and so superficial.

[13] The recording sessions for American Life started in late 2001, then was put on hold as Madonna filmed Swept Away on location in Malta and Sardinia and starred in the West End play Up for Grabs.

[17] About the musical composition, Ahmadzaï told to Remix magazine that they "tried to under-produce many tracks to make them sound rougher than the average international pop production.

[15] "'Mother and Father' is a way to free me from the pain caused by my mother's death, but without putting myself a medal for finding my way in life without even asking for compassion just because I went through a hard time.

"[21] Jon Pareles, writing for The New York Times, characterized the album's sound as a "mixture of acoustic guitar-picking, ticking drum machines and swooping, buzzing synthesizer lines", adding that "The guitar signals the sincerity of a singer-songwriter, while all the gizmos add the retro catchiness of the synth-pop music now being revived under the name electroclash.

[23] The second track and single "Hollywood" is introduced with sounds of tweeting birds, before an acoustic guitar starts with a four chord sequence that has been compared to songs by the band Red Hot Chili Peppers.

[24] The texture grows with addition of drums and synths, until after a minute the instrumental is pulled out, leaving just Madonna's vocals and the acoustic guitar accompaniment where she alludes to the Beatles' Norwegian Wood.

[24] The fourth track "Love Profusion" starts with another acoustic guitar introduction, with rhythm being produced by a bass drum with synth-strings added later in the song.

[27] Still recovering from the commercial disappointment of Swept Away, Madonna changed her image completely to resemble that of a fighter, with inspirations from pictures of Argentinian guerrilla leader Che Guevara.

[14][35] However, as the months went on and the album became more of a meditation on the difficulty of leading a spiritual life in the glamour industry, the title was changed to Hollywood with Madonna saying that it was "a reflection of my state of mind and a view of the world right now".

[48] She also performed a private concert in Paris, France, at restaurant Cantine du Faubourg to people who won tickets on a promotion hosted by NRJ Radio, and also some of her French friends including designer Jean-Paul Gaultier, director Luc Besson and producer Ahmadzaï.

[49] On August 27, 2003, Madonna opened the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards with American recording artists Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, performing a medley of "Like a Virgin" and "Hollywood".

[80] Billboard's Michael Paoletta noted the lyrical differences from past albums such as Ray of Light positively, saying "American Life relies less on spiritual introspection and more on woman-in-the-mirror confrontation.

"[38] Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker generally responded well, saying that at its best, the album offers blunt, questing and decisive music but the weakest point was Madonna sounding like a girl who's grown content with her husband and kids and the ability to hire help to do her bidding.

"It's frequently self-indulgent, misguided, unpleasant, difficult to listen to, silly and humorless, but it's also consistent, uncompromising and unapologetic," Cinquemani opined, ending with the deduction that American Life stood for the last time Madonna made music without the primary objective of making a hit.

[94] Jon Pareles from The New York Times felt that Madonna tried to be honest with the concept of American Dream in the album, but ended up producing songs akin to the "folkie psychobabble" of songwriters like Jewel.

[54] Alexis Petridis of The Guardian responded well to parts of the record saying "American Life's best tracks make a mockery of virtually all other current pop music" however his conclusive point in the review was that there was not enough of good songs.

[87] BBC's Ian Young also gave a negative review, saying that "the tunes are bland and weak, the lyrics are uninspired and self-absorbed and the semi-Ibiza backing music is bare and recycled—and we are convinced that she has lost it.

[116][117] The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) awarded American Life Platinum certification, signifying sales of over one million copies across Europe.

He explored how Madonna's foray into the medium inspired other marketers and advertisers, cementing her "reputation for innovation and staying power" and sparking a "revolution of wireless ad campaigns".

[132] The release of American Life has been also noted for Madonna's forays fighting online piracy, with various labeling her stunt as a response not just to file-sharing community, but also against the very notion of free culture.

[140] Lucy O'Brien commented American Life marked a "significant dip" in her career, but like a lot of her peers, she had been "compromised as an artist" when a cultural "atmosphere of fear" invaded the United States.

[141] "Easy Ride", "X-Static Process" and "Nobody Knows Me" were included among Madonna's greatest deep cuts in rankings by publications such as Slant Magazine, PopMatters, VH1 and the Official Charts Company.

[156] Conversely, in January 2023, Rolling Stone ranked American Life at number 26 on their list of the "50 Genuinely Horrible Albums by Brilliant Artists", characterizing "the whole project [...] hopelessly muddled when it wasn't just downright embarrassing".