The song was released on January 10, 2005 as the fourth and final single from the album.
Lead singer Adam Gontier talked about the song "Wake Up" during an interview.
Patricia Jones of AXS stated, "Instrumentally this song is beautiful.
The melodies are well orchestrated and the heavy guitar help balance out the lightness of the rest, but it’s the lyrics that cause some conflict."
She praised the song for being an "easy" and "entrenching" track and how "the lyrics are in sharp contrast to the ease of the music.