Cobb was recording an album in Nashville, Tennessee, with Isbell, and asked him to write a song for the soundtrack based on Cooper's character, Jackson.

Inspired by the vulnerability and emotional painful, ruthlessness, and toughness situations portrayed by Cooper's character in the film, "Maybe It's Time" is a melancholic folk rock country ballad played entirely on guitar with lyrics on the theme of salvation and redemption.

After listening to producer Dave Cobb's work, actor Bradley Cooper, who was also directing A Star Is Born, approached him to craft the soundtracks album's sound.

Cobb was recording an album in Nashville, Tennessee, with American singer-songwriter and guitarist Jason Isbell, and asked him to write a song for the soundtrack.

Cooper felt the Americana folk rock blend of the tune fit perfectly with Jackson's character, highlighting his fading career and substance abuse problems.

[9] Before its production Cooper had reached out to musician Lukas Nelson, with whom he practiced for about a year, learning to play the guitar, and honing his vocal skills.

[10] Jeremy Gordon of The Outline felt the track could be a campaign song for a future American presidential candidate who is a younger visionary, noting: The old ways—hardcore social conservatism, white supremacy, the myth of America as shining city on the hill despite all the people who've been barred from the doors over the last 250 years—need to be forgotten by time.

[6] Dann Gire of the Daily Arlington Herald found that "Maybe It's Time" portrayed more of a nostalgia for Cooper's character as an artist on the decline, "rather than the optimistic challenge of new talent he undoubtedly was when he first sang it".

[16] Carl Wilson of Slate described Cooper's songs on the soundtrack as "mostly gray zones that one has to sit through, waiting for Gaga to come back", except "Maybe It's Time" which he compared to the work of American singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt.

[17] Following the soundtrack's release, "Maybe It's Time" debuted at number 93 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming Cooper's first solo entry and second overall, after lead single, "Shallow" (with Gaga).

[30] Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder covered the song live at Tempe, Arizona's Innings Festival in 2019,[31] and later performed it once again at BottleRock Napa Valley 2024 in a duet with Cooper.