Produced by Michael Bay, Adam Goodman, Andrew Sugerman and Eben Davidson, the film features an ensemble cast of KJ Apa, Sofia Carson, Craig Robinson, Bradley Whitford, Peter Stormare, Alexandra Daddario, Paul Walter Hauser and Demi Moore, depicting their struggle living under a highly strict and brutal quarantine by the highly authoritarian government in the midst of a mutating virus outbreak.

The project was announced in May 2020, with screenwriters Adam Mason and Simon Boyes having come up with the idea in March, shortly after the pandemic stopped all film production; the cast joined in June.

Nico Price, a motorbike courier with immunity, due to the fact he was infected with the virus, is in a virtual relationship with Sara Garcia, a young artist living with her grandmother Lita whose lockdown prohibits them from physical contact.

William is a former record executive having a sexual affair with May, a singer who makes a living online selling covers of classic songs.

May develops a bond with Michael Dozer, a disabled war veteran who works for Lester as a drone operator to keep track of their couriers.

One night, Lita begins to show symptoms of COVID-23 while the "sanitation" department, led by Emmett Harland, is forcing Sara's neighbor Alice out of her apartment after she becomes infected.

[11][12] The production adhered to safety protocols including regular testing, a maximum crew size of 40 per day, and keeping actors separated.

Criticism was aimed towards the production and timing of release due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as well as romanticization of the topic, being compared unfavorably to Romeo and Juliet.

The site's critics consensus reads: "Muddled, tedious, and uninspired, Songbird's gimmick never coalesces into a meaningful story about pandemic lockdown.

[21] Alonso Duralde of TheWrap wrote "It's not inherently misguided to use a current tragedy as the jumping-off point of a genre movie, but any filmmaker who decides to do so had better create something provocative or interesting or at least competent to justify it.

"[22] Writing for IndieWire, David Ehrlich gave the film a "D" and said, "For all of its gimmicky appeal, Songbird is bad enough that your entire neighborhood will be able to smell it streaming onto your TV, and it gets worse faster than your nose can adjust to the stench.

"[23] Korey Coleman of Double Toasted found Peter Stormare's performance humorous, but criticized the overall message of the film, calling it "irresponsible", and noted the numerous plot holes imbued by the love story which overtook the entire premise.

"[25] Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com gave the film 0/4 stars and wrote: "The truth is that even if one sets aside all potential moral arguments about the very existence of Songbird, it's still just really bad.

"[26] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter wrote: "Despite the high-stakes drama, there's nary a compelling moment throughout, and some of the characterizations... are so absurdly one-note that it's hard not to think that the film is meant as parody.

"[28] Benjamin Lee of The Guardian gave the film three out of five stars, saying that it was "an acceptably watchable thriller that's more notable for what it achieves technically than anything else.

"[29] Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph also gave the film three out of five stars, saying that it was "even more spectacularly crass and exploitative than you could have possibly hoped", and concluded: "Songbird itself delivers an enjoyably tactless jolt of trash-cinema bravado.