Release (Timbaland song)

"Release" received generally positive reviews from music critics, with many praising the song's uptempo sound and unusual style.

The song drew comparison to music by British electronic dance recording duo Basement Jaxx and to Justin Timberlake's "SexyBack", which Timbaland helped write and produce.

Sound engineer Demacio "Demo" Castellón handled the recording and programming of the song, which took place at three locations: Thomas Crown Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia, Chalice Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California, and Hit Factory Criteria in Miami, Florida.

Singer Keri Hilson is featured as the background vocalist with producer and musician Jim Beanz, who also helmed the vocal production of the song.

"[7] Christian Hoard, in his review of Shock Value for Rolling Stone, wrote " On "Release", Tim and Timberlake work up disco that sounds a bit like “SexyBack”, in a good way.

"[9] Steve "Flash" Juon of RapReviews compared "Release" to "SexyBack", writing it off as an unofficial sequel to the aforementioned song and found it to be better than its predecessor.

[10] David Hyland of WESH Orlando found the song to be more interesting and elaborate than "Kill Yourself", which he describes as "so un-ambitious that it's disappointing."