[12] The success of this single, which went double Platinum, led to Hot Chelle Rae being named the 2011 winners of the AMA's "Best New Artist" award.

[12] The band then spent the summer of 2011 touring with artists including Mike Posner, Justin Bieber, We the Kings, and the Script.

[14] The cover art of the "Whatever" album, which features the four band members in separate colored squares was referred to by Cambio.com as drawing "inspiration from something in between the memory game Simon and the work of Andy Warhol".

[1] Allmusic gave it 3 and a half stars, and stated that Whatever "may not be a formula designed for critical acclaim or longevity, but pop music has always been exactly like this and HCR would make Bobby Vee, the Archies, and the New Radicals proud."

[14] Music critic Jon Caramanica of The New York Times compared Hot Chelle Rae's "Whatever" album to "the early breakthroughs" of bands including Sum 41 and Blink-182.