Critical reception

Early acclaim came from Direct Lyrics, who says "Fly" is being praised by fans on Twitter. Notably highlighting the song's guitar solos, epic drums, and Phillip's passionate vocals. No doubt 'Fly' is such an intense record! "I feel it's hard to say what's on my mind", sings the winner of American Idol season 11 in the chorus of the song. Yes Phillip! I like."^[4] John Frahm of Yahoo! Voices gave the song a positive review, "In "Fly", Phillips makes the transition deeper into the Alternative rock scene rather effortlessly, definitely never sacrificing the tremendous instrumentals that we've come to know him as an arranger for and most definitely never sacrificing a thing when it comes to his hugely brooding, idiosyncratic voice and style. He added, "Phillip Phillips has never quite rocked out up to this point in the way that he does on "Fly", and he does so so very well. In saying that this track won't necessarily be the immediate radio hit that "Raging Fire" was, I don't meant that it's impossible for it to sell on the market should it ever be released for adds. It's quite the contrary, really; though Phillips' core audience may need a bit of time to lean into the heavier rock and roll atmosphere that he's set up for us in this track, it maintains the structure of positively infectious past hits very well—just with much more of a raw swagger to be taken along with it. He's produced something both unexpected and brilliant, ushering in an era of purer rock music that hasn't been heard from a mainstream artist in as genuine a way as he is able to bring about in a long, long while. It's the type of rock-heavy song that could do especially well as the leading track on a movie soundtrack!"