The song was initially recorded for inclusion on a scrapped re-release of Duff's fourth studio album Dignity (2007).

Duff said in September 2007 that a previously unheard song on the Dignity Tour's set list, "Reach Out", would be released as a single.

[2] In an interview with Joe Bermudez in November 2007, Duff revealed that her fourth studio album Dignity would be re-released.

Originally written about Elvis's love for his wife Priscilla,[6] the Lizzie McGuire star sacrilegiously turns this into an innuendo-laden squelch-fest.

Accompanied by a video that sees Duff humping a marble statue, a tree trunk and the camera, 'Reach Out' has an unpleasant whiff of desperation about it".

"[9][10] Andy H of Angryape (UK) said the song "should do well, no doubt there – considering the current trend of electro-pop, with the club beat, rocky guitar sample and a confident sexiness in the vocals.

"[12] Commonsensemedia called "Reach Out" a "hit single" that "features more aggressive sexual lyrics than on previous [Hilary Duff] albums.

[16] The video opens with scantily-clad people streaking in the backyard of a mansion, then shows R. Prophet rapping in front of a fountain.

There are scenes of Duff dancing in front of a mirror and sitting on a sofa wearing a long white dress; in the same room she can be seen holding a shirtless man's leg.