It was released on May 25, 2018, to radio stations through Atlantic Records as the fourth single from her debut studio album, Invasion of Privacy (2018).

The song contains a sample from "I Like It Like That", replayed by musicians during production,[1] with Tony Pabón, Manny Rodriguez, and Benny Bonnilla being credited as co-writers.

The single topped the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Cardi B's second number one—the first time a female rapper achieved this in the chart's history,[3] and the first for both Bad Bunny and J Balvin.

[7][8] It became the first female rap song to surpass a billion streams on Spotify, also making Cardi B the first woman in hip hop with a pair of billion-streamers on the service, joining her collaboration "Girls Like You".

[...] Everything about this song is perfect for summer: the trap-meets-salsa beat, features from two of reggaeton's biggest stars, a sample of Pete Rodriguez's half-century-old boogaloo hit 'I Like It Like That'.

She also noted that the verses from both Bad Bunny and J Balvin "match Cardi's energy" and "add complementary dynamism to the track.

"[22] Rolling Stone staff ranked "I Like It" among the best songs of the 2010s, deeming it Cardi's "hugely expansive vision of hip-hop as a multicultural, worldwide block party.

[40] Internationally, the single also charted within the top 10 in Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

"[41] "I Like It" also became the first number one single—and the first Latin trap song in this genre to do so—on the Billboard Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart for Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin, reaching that summit in its September 1, 2018 issue, benefitting from the support from both the 80 reporting stations (dual Top 40/CHR and Rhythmic outlets who submit their mix show hours or incorporate it in their playlist) and the core full-time Dance/EDM stations, the latter utilizing the remixed Dance versions of the song.

[45] The song's accompanying music video was directed by Eif Rivera and filmed during the week of March 27, 2018 in Little Havana, Miami.

[48] Released on May 29, 2018, the music video opens with Cardi B in a neighborhood, followed by scenes of Bad Bunny in the streets and J Balvin in a club.

[49] Director Eif Rivera stated in an interview that he was inspired by the movie I Like It Like That (1994), which opening scene centered in a neighborhood of the South Bronx.

[46] People en Español stated that the video "transports" the viewer "to be part of scenes and traditions worthy of a tropical afternoon.

"[50] The magazine and Vibe noted Cardi B's garments and "traditional rumba clothing accessories" inspired by Celia Cruz.

Cardi B, Bad Bunny and J Balvin gave the first live performance of "I Like It" at the 2018 Coachella Music Festival during its second weekend, on April 22.

"[60] In 2019, Vulture writer Gary Suarez stated that "I Like It" marked the introduction to a mainstream, massive audience of "a musical movement otherwise unknown to their ears", "transformed" Bad Bunny into "a household name" and "set the stage" for his full-length debut X 100pre.

"[63] In Slate, Chris Molanphy considered that the artists produced "a different and more interesting animal" than previous Latin-influenced chart-toppers in the Anglo-market, and deemed it "a Trojan Horse distinct from any of the crossover records either of the 2017–18 wave or of the Latin Boom 1.0. in 1999.