It was released on April 4, 2000, through LaFace Records, two years after disbanding of the girl group Choice, where Pink served as a soloist.

The R&B and dance pop record, Can't Take Me Home was produced by Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, Babyface, Kandi Burruss, Terence "Tramp Baby" Abney, Daryl Simmons, and Tricky, while Pink shares songwriting credits on seven out of thirteen tracks.

Can't Take Me Home received mixed-to-positive reception from contemporary music critics, with some of them comparing style of the record with those of Destiny's Child, Aaliyah and TLC.

Later, Pink revealed her dissatisfaction about music direction of the album, her personal image during its promotional campaign and the lack of creative control she was offered.

A copy of their first song, "Key to My Heart", was sent to LaFace Records in Atlanta, Georgia, where L.A. Reid overheard it and arranged for the group to fly there so he could see them perform.

[6] Can't Take Me Home was produced by Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, Babyface, Kandi Burruss, Terence "Tramp Baby" Abney, Daryl Simmons, and Tricky.

To promote the record, Pink was billed as a supporting act on the North American leg of NSYNC's No Strings Attached Tour throughout the summer of 2000.

[17] Elsewhere, it peaked inside the top ten in the charts of eight more countries, including second spot in Australia,[18] where it eventually received Platinum certification by ARIA for shipment of 70 thousands copies.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine, the senior editor of AllMusic, found the album similar to the works of TLC, but he complemented Pink's vocal performance, saying, that "she may not be able to deliver ballads with assurance and soul just yet, but she never over-sings".

saying: "Sadly, Pink's debut is a little samey and suffers from the diva disease that modern R&B acts [...] are helping to stamp out.

[46] On 2000 Billboard Music Awards, Pink was honored with New Female Artist of the Year for commercial performance of the album and its single.

[51] Eventually, Can't Take Me Home was certified as double Platinum by RIAA for shipment of two million copies in the United States.

[57] It was the 32 best-selling album in Australia during 2000[58] and eventually it was certified double platinum by ARIA for shipments of 140 thousand copies in country.

[27] In the United Kingdom, album peaked at number thirteen[61] and was certified Platinum by British Phonographic Industry ever since.

[64] Despite Can't Take Me Home's success, Pink felt dissatisfied and constrained by her lack of creative control and being marketed to a teen audience as an R&B singer.

[70][71] Her father, Jim Moore, said in an October 2000 MTV News interview that Pink expressed interest in experimenting and showcasing her versatility on her forthcoming album.

[72] Tired of being marketed as another cookie cutter pop act, as well as eager both to be seen as a more serious songwriter and musician and to perform the type of music she wanted to, Pink took her sound in a new direction and sought more artistic or creative control during the recording of her second album, Missundaztood.

[74] Perry co-wrote and co-produced the album with Dallas Austin and Scott Storch, and according to VH1's Driven program, Antonio "LA" Reid of LaFace Records was not initially content with the new music Pink was making.

Reid was concerned about Pink departing from her R&B sound, alienating an audience who was expecting another album like Can't Take Me Home.

[75] Her desire for more creative control met with resistance, but Reid failed to persuade Pink to record more R&B songs.

[77] Kate Sullivan of Spin called Pink's direction on the album "a rebellion against the producer-driven machinery that created her 2000 debut, Can't Take Me Home".

[78][79][80] Robert Hilburn wrote for the Los Angeles Times that Pink's reinvention (and its potential commercial impact) was initially questioned, but was later "a move industry observers now applaud as brilliant".

[82] In a 2021 retrospective, Arielle Gordon of Stereogum said that Pink's opposition to her label's pressure to remain an R&B singer "somehow wrestled autonomy of her image and sound in an industry practically fueled by harnessing complete control of their young, primarily female stars.