It is a guitar-driven R&B song written by Jauregui and produced by Kid Harpoon, about an unresponsive relationship and the struggle to amend the situation.

Jauregui debuted the track live in June 2018, as the opening act for Halsey's Hopeless Fountain Kingdom Tour in Latin America.

The song's black-and-white music video was creatively directed and co-edited by Jauregui, and portrays two opposing facets of the artist.

[2][3][4] She premiered the track, along with two other songs she wrote, in June 2018 in São Paulo, Brazil, as the opening act for Halsey's Hopeless Fountain Kingdom Tour in Latin America.

[6] Jauregui said of "Expectations" as her debut solo song: "Just the context of it and the mood of it, I feel like is a really great introduction to the world that I'm about to give people.

[15] Billboard editor Gil Kaufman said that in the sultry song, Jauregui's vocals rise into an "urgent moan" on the "pleading" chorus, and the track's "smoky, late night" mood is amplified by its "ripping" blues guitar solo.

[16] Idolator praised the record's instrumentation and "slinky" production, considering the song a "bold moment that is bound to put Jauregui on the right path" as she sounds "utterly at ease and highlights her compelling vocals", delivering "heaps" of personality.

[19] MTV said the "smoky" song showcases Jauregui's "powerful pipes and marks a clear departure from Fifth Harmony's airy pop material".