Contrary to the melancholic sentiments of the lyrics, the music is upbeat electropop, dance-pop, new wave, and synth-disco, incorporating house and bubblegum beats, and salient synth arpeggios.

Swift started working on The Tortured Poets Department immediately after she submitted her tenth studio album, Midnights, to Republic Records for release in 2022.

[7][8][9] Props that were used in the number evoked Golden Age of Hollywood, such as tailcoats, feathers, and canes; Ludovic Hunter-Tilney of the Financial Times thought that the choreography was inspired by the film director Busby Berkeley.

[10][11] To celebrate the European leg of the tour, Universal Music Group released the song to Italian radio as the second single from the album on July 2, 2024.

[13] The track was released digitally on music streaming services on July 16, 2024; the cover artwork is a capture of Swift's performance of the song at the Eras Tour concert in Lyon, France, on June 2, 2024.

[16] It also includes rehearsals for the live performance of "I Can Do It with a Broken Heart", costume changes and Swift entering a cleaning cart prop used to transport her onto the raised stage.

[33] Music journalists suggested "I Can Do It with a Broken Heart" discusses Swift's need to hide her negative emotions regarding the breakup while performing on her tour ("All the pieces of me shattered as the crowd was chanting 'more'.").

[41] Writing for The Guardian, Laura Snapes considered the lyric "lights, camera, bitch smile" to be "meme-worthy" and "makes clear why she wanted [her music] back on TikTok.

[42] Olivia Horn from Pitchfork similarly suggested that the lyrics were "versed in memespeak" and the music was too familiar to Swift and Antonoff's past collaborations.

[29] By contrast, Tom Breihan of Stereogum wrote that the song showcased "a musical energy and inventiveness" that suggested a new path for Swift's artistry, praising the vocals and keyboard instrumentation.

[44] Following the album's release, its tracks occupied the top nine of the Billboard Global 200; "I Can Do It with a Broken Heart" debuted at its peak of number five on the chart, where it extended Swift's top-10 entries to 33.