The song, a piano- and-instrument driven blue-eyed soul ballad, garnered acclaim from critics as a standout track from the album.

Bieber performed the song as an intro to "Baby" on the ninth season of American Idol and on Saturday Night Live.

"[1] Bieber explained on his Twitter that his fans "took him from a small town in Canada" to the "amazing opportunity" he is living now, and feels "grateful for everything" and "blessed" for the support.

[2] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly said the song is "the best by far" of My World 2.0, calling it "a shimmery slice of Hall & Oates-style blue-eyed soul".

[2] Originally released as a digital-only single, the song debuted at number twenty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100, selling 83,000 downloads in its first week.

[11] On September 30, 2010, the music video for "U Smile" premiered online, it was directed by Colin Tilley, with a cameo appearance by Sandra Bullock.

Ziegbe felt that the video suggested "a more mature Bieber, who appears to relish the quiet moments with his gal pal away from the nonstop fan hysteria.

"[12] Starting out in a black and white frame (and later incorporating scenes of color), a group of girls are seen standing outside on the street while Bieber is seen exiting a building while trying to walk away without getting noticed.

Bieber later performed an a cappella version of the song for the final time during his Washington, DC stop of his Purpose World Tour.

In August 2010, music producer Varien used the sound processing software PaulStretch to create an 800% slower version of the album track, lasting around 35 minutes, which he made available via SoundCloud.

Alex Garland, the film's writer and producer, said that Portishead instrumentalist Geoff Barrow "sent me a link to a Justin Bieber song slowed down 800 times and it became this stunning trippy choral music."