After the release of two acclaimed extended plays (EPs), Abrams began recording Good Riddance at Aaron Dessner's Long Pond Studio in the Hudson Valley, New York, across 25 non-consecutive days.

Good Riddance is primarily a pop album with whispered vocals, drawing from a moody and electronic sonic palette.

Following themes of guilt, heartbreak, self-identity, personal accountability, and coming of age, the album was written about friendships, family, and Abrams' breakup with Blake Slatkin.

Critics gave the album generally favorable reviews; they praised Abrams' confessional songwriting, but had a mixed response to Dessner's production.

[1][2] Though she thought she'd never consider performing music professionally,[1] she released her debut extended play (EP) Minor in 2020,[3] followed by This Is What It Feels Like in 2021.

[4] The EPs helped gain her attention from high-profile musicians such as Billie Eilish, Lorde, Olivia Rodrigo,[5] and Phoebe Bridgers.

[12] Abrams chose the title Good Riddance because while it sounds harsh, she liked its satirical side, "To be comfortable casually throwing certain things away and walking into the next chapter no matter what that looks like".

She also felt that there were shifts in her personal life while creating the album, so she said "good riddance" to "versions of [herself] that [she] didn't recognize anymore".

Dessner convinced Abrams to move forward with writing and recording the songs,[2] telling her that "holding space for brutal honesty in songwriting is kind of the whole point".

[16] Early development of Good Riddance started when Dessner invited her to record at Long Pond during 2021, making ten songs.

[6] She felt lucky to evolve without Slatkin, another of her former collaborators, and safe to "figure out" her sound with Dessner when writing Good Riddance.

[24] The album presents Abrams' distinctive[19][8][23] whispered vocals addressing themes of guilt,[25][26] heartbreak, self-identity,[26] personal accountability,[27] and coming of age.

[31] Dork wrote that the album is "a journey through a spectrum of emotions" and that "each song blossoms from a whisper to a crescendo, encapsulating the most simple yet resonant feelings".

[32] Maya Georgi of Rolling Stone described the album's melodies as "soft-spoken" and "simple", and said they are "steeped in sadness but still pack a punch".

[35] She also described the production in "Full Machine" as consisting of "cool, moody textures" and that the track is "a thoughtful and revelatory exploration of the relationships by which we define our lives and what happens to them when we change.

further alludes to Abrams' breakup with Slatkin, examining her mental health, family and friends, and the sorrows of going through her early 20s.

[26] For Pitchfork, Bua described "Amelie" as "bewitching" and commented that it "captures a sense of aching beauty that stands out amongst the album's more passive moments" atop a finger-picked acoustic guitar and dim piano notes.

[21] Hannah Dailey of Billboard called it "a tender love letter to the ways a stranger can permanently alter our lives without realizing".

[26] The penultimate song "The Blue" marks a turning point in the album's theme, focusing on a new love after Abrams recovered from her ex-partner.

[8] The album's final track of the standard edition, "Right Now", reflects on the difficulty of life and leaving the past behind atop simplistic production that is powered by droning synthesizers.

[14] On January 9, 2023, Abrams announced the album and the North American leg of the Good Riddance Tour, which began on March 7.

[49] On December 14, 2023, Abrams made her debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, performing "I Should Hate You".

[51] Writing for Dork, Martyn Young felt the album had "incredible depth" and "possesses an atmosphere and charm all of its own", calling it an "emotional rollercoaster".

[30] The Line of Best Fit's Amaya Lin said the album "verges on greatness" and called it "an incredibly honest portrayal of guilt, doubt, and heartbreak".

[27] Of the South China Morning Post, Chinny Kwok wrote that Abrams' lyrics "exceed expectations and prove she is a profound songwriter".

[21] Lin thought it was "both hyperspecific and extremely vague" and felt that the situations and characters presented in the tracks lacked essential context.

[29] Mylrea highlighted Dessner's distinctive touch on the tracks and thought that his production added a new depth to Abrams' sound.

[59] For Rolling Stone, who named it the 62nd best, Maya Georgi called it a "stunning debut", and wrote that "the way she can deliver seething lines in an angelic whisper sets her apart from her bedroom-pop peers".