Hard to Do

Michelle performed "Hard to Do" at the BET Awards 2015, as part of a set with American singers Tamar Braxton and Patti LaBelle, and at the Power 107 Bash.

[2] Derek Blythe performed the guitar on the track; the vocals were produced by Atterberry and recorded by C Travis Kr8ts, with additional assistance from Jared Lynch and the Soundz.

[3] On April 17, 2015, "Hard to Do" was released as the fourth single from Michelle's second studio album Anybody Wanna Buy a Heart?

[2][7][12] Sarah Godfrey praised the single as "uniquely beautiful",[7] and a writer from The Rickey Smiley Show identified it as the strongest track from the album.

[12] Mike Wass positively responded to Michelle's vocals on "Hard to Do", and described the song as "another gripping, intensely autobiographical (and explicit) ballad".

"[15] On April 28, 2015, Michelle also released a photo of herself posing in a bathtub while wearing a thong and fishnets; Mike Wass called it an "eye-popping, pulse-quickening glimpse".

[16] She sings with a zebra in a white room while dressed in a striped bodysuit,[5] and performs in a bathtub surrounded by flamingos while wearing only a black thong and pink feathers.

[18] Emily Tan of The Boombox wrote that the singer chooses to follow a "playful route" and "channels her wild side" through the release.

Tan interpreted the video's emphasis on animals as connected to the song's sexual content and how Michelle "get[s] in touch with her primal senses".

Diana Renee Williams of The Augusta Chronicle praised Michelle's performance, writing that it "showcas[ed] her relevance on the R&B music scene and solidif[ied] her talent as a solo artist".

An image of an African-American woman in a skintight bodysuit posing in front of a zebra.
Throughout the music video, Michelle performs the song in scenes with various exotic animals. Emily Tan of The Boombox interpreted the focus on animals as representative of Michelle "getting in touch with her primal senses". [ 8 ]