[1] The cover art features an image of Kai the Black Angel sitting on a car's front window with a white do-rag on his head and wings clipped to his back.

[15] David Sackllah of Consequence of Sound stated that "Negro Swan is a grand work that gives credit to the pioneers of the culture while building a path forward within that framework, placing Hynes firmly in the canon as one of the most insightful musicians of his generation.

"[22] Slant Magazine's Zachary Hoskins wrote, "It's this ability to capture both sides with equal commitment—the struggle and the resistance through self-love—that makes Negro Swan Hynes's most assured, accomplished, and significant album to date.

"[23] The Independent critic Jazz Monroe said "While Negro Swan elaborates on Hynes's best work, he remains grounded in cosy bedroom-pop by shambling drum machines, vocal compressors and gratuitous psych pedals.

"[10] In the review for AllMusic, writer Andy Kellman stated that the album, "qualifies as Hynes' most inward work, but it's a product of considerable interaction, whether the singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist is handing off ideas to Diddy on the Connected-era Foreign Exchange-like "Hope", trading primary instruments with the Internet's Steve Lacy on the swirling "Out of Your League", or leaving enough room on each track for up to four additional voices, including Kelsey Lu, Amandla Stenberg, and Adam Bainbridge.