[1] Described as a "slinky" midtempo pop and R&B-influenced ballad, the recording incorporates "raw" guitar riffs, "snare slaps", "whooshing synths" and a "dub step-esque boom-bap" in its instrumentation.

[2] Commercially, the song reached top-ten peaks in Hungary and Israel while reaching top-twenty in Canada, France, Scotland, top forty in Australia and the United States where it charted at number seventeen on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Dance Club Songs chart.

On October 8, 2015, Spears posted on her Instagram account a picture of herself with British producer and DJ Burns, hinting a possible collaboration.

[3] Prior to their studio meeting, the producer had worked on the instrumental part of the track, mixing organic elements with "electronic stuff", as well as playing guitar, thus creating what would become "Make Me".

As stated by Burns, "The vocal was one of my main focuses on this one because I wanted it to feel like there was some kind of emotion in that, which isn't necessarily in a lot of the most recent singles that she did.

[7] Robin Leach from the Las Vegas Sun claimed he was told that, "She's gone from pretty straight-forward pop to a really interesting vibe with a lot of really cool stuff.

It shows "her toned body while walking through the desert wrapped in a white piece of fabric" and wearing a "pair of thigh-high boots".

[2][4][18][19][20][21] It features "raw" guitar riffs,[22] "soothing electronics",[23] "snare slaps",[24] "whooshing synths" and a "dub step-esque boom-bap".

"[29] As noted by Billboard staff, the second part of the song features "sexy" lyrics such as "No rules/From the bar to the car, let's take it back to my room/Igniting the heat of the woman; let the sparks fuse/Blowing up to the ceiling, we're burning bright/When we cross the line.

[31] Kevin O'Donnell of Entertainment Weekly gave "Make Me" an A− grade, calling the song a "woozy, future-funk burner...packed with whooshing synths and a seductive, dub step-esque boom-bap.

"[30] Michael Cragg of The Guardian noted that the song "takes aim at a current pop zeitgeist – that of the mood-drenched, slowed down sex jam – but this time walks away a clear victor.

[33] Sasha Geffen of MTV News was complimentary with the track, noting that it "fits perfectly alongside other recent hits asking dudes to do their due diligence after dark, like Fifth Harmony's 'Work from Home'," and praising the "simmering instrumental from L.A. producer Burns.

"[35] Idolator staff gave the track an average rating of 6 out of 10, with Robbie Daw calling it "pretty safe", Carl Williot naming it "the freshest she's sounded since her pioneering molly-pop days in 2011", and Rachel Sonis remarking that "Britney is gunning for a radio hit here.

"[36] Gerrick D. Kennedy of Los Angeles Times was also complimentary, praising Burns for crafting "a lush, down-tempo bedroom number that largely eschews the Vocoder and Auto-Tune effects that have dotted her most recent work."

[20] Alim Kheraj of Digital Spy opined that "what's so refreshing is that Brit's signature vocals are given the space they need to shine; she sounds sexy, engaged and like she truly loves it.

"[23] Kerensa Cadenas of Complex defined it as "fine [...] it's Britney meets 2016", noting that the song is "a bit melancholy but without fully becoming the #sadgirl dance pop of a Carly Rae Jepsen or Sky Ferreira.

[47] Spears teased scenes of the original video online, which featured numerous backup dancers and a variety of risqué outfits.

[48][49] Scenes from the LaChapelle video managed to leak online, featuring men "hanging off poles next to leopards" and Spears "baring all with nothing but sparkly body paint" inside a cage.

[50] RCA Records ultimately opted to support a final, tamer music video, which was filmed on July 16, 2016 with director Randee St.

[62] Jeff Benjamin of Fuse called it a "fun" performance, where "Britney made a triumphant return to the VMA stage.

"[63] Joe Lynch of Billboard considered the performance "as beguiling as the song itself", naming it a "solid VMA return for Britney".

[68] In the United Kingdom, Spears performed the song on the Apple Music Festival on September 27, 2016,[69] and The Jonathan Ross Show on October 1, 2016.