Milian made her first professional musical appearance on Ja Rule's single "Between Me and You", which led to a record deal with Def Soul in 2000.

The album's musical style is mostly dance and R&B, and critics noted similarities to Milian's contemporaries Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.

Milian was displeased by Def Soul's portrayal of her image, which she felt was constantly changing and confusing the audience.

[3] Milian traveled to Sweden and recorded her self-titled debut album,[4] working with the popular producers of that time.

[5] Milian collaborated with Bloodshy & Avant, Jermaine Dupri, Focus, Irv Gotti, Mark Hill, Montell Jordan and Evan Rogers.

Ahmed guessed that "beneath the froth, there's a certain depth of soul" in Milian, and thought "Get Away" had similar excellent results to her previous collaboration with Ja Rule, "Between Me and You".

[12] Contrastingly, Andrew Lynch of entertainment.ie described the album as "relentlessly ordinary", and suggested that Milian needed original ideas.

Lynch said that if Milian "really wants to compete with the big girls, she badly needs to spice up her tired formula.

"[11] A reviewer for Dawn commended the album for being "full of danceable, likeable tracks, and even the occasional, successful ballad like 'Until I Get Over You'".

[13] Carmen Meyer of iafrica.com found the "smooth, groovy and refreshing" album to be filled "with light-hearted and catchy tracks, which can be enjoyed either in a club, your car or even when chilling at home."

She commented on the album's tracks, which ranged from "melodic and heart-rending ballads to funky dance beats that are bound to keep you moving".

"[3] Milian believed that the public expected "a certain thing" from her when she first appeared with Ja Rule, however she wanted to record the type of music she was signed to do.

[5] To explain that she was serious about her musical career, Milian approached the executives at Island Def Jam, and "cussed them all out", telling them that they were not listening to her.