[5] Normani teased the project at the 2018 American Music Awards, saying a song was to be released "in the next few days".

[6] Normani also posted a short clip online of herself writing "Oct. 22" on a piece of red tape before a voice off-camera tells her to "drop the pen".

[8][9] Wandera Hussein of The Fader praised Normani's vocal performance by saying the singer sings "heavenly" on the song's hook.

[9] Complex noted that the two tracks feature a production style similar to Harris's 2017 album Funk Wav Bounces Vol.

[2] Rolling Stone called the songs "clubby R&B with tropical tinges", saying Normani hits a "bouncy pop stride" on "Checklist", and noting "Slow Down" "does exactly the opposite of what the title teases: it's a slow jam that builds up to a house-y dancefloor burner for the verses".