soundtrack, commented "we were lucky to have Janet involved, especially at a time where she was going through a lot. We were basically finished with the picture when she told Tyler she wanted to write something. It's a strong love song [...] and is our big end title finish." Co-producer Jermaine Dupri also spoke about the song, revealing "We had to do this record in like three days to get it into this movie – it was a last minute thing that her and Tyler [Perry] talked about." Dupri also added "You haven't heard Janet sound like this in a long time and I think the song is perfect for the movie. It's a really good record." Promotion To promote the song and film, Janet held a contest on her official website titled "Janet's Everything for Nothing Experience", which allowed the winner to receive a personally autographed copy of her Number Ones compilation, with the grand-prize winner receiving an autographed Why Did I Get Married Too? poster. Expressing gratitude to her fans, Jackson tweeted "Thank u for all the love on 'Nothing.' I hope u will enjoy Why Did I Get Married Too this week!" Critical reception MTV qualified "Nothing" as having "waves of heartfelt emotion" and "mournful beauty". Rolling Stone described the track as "classic pop," adding that the lyrics reflect the tensions and turmoil between the film characters. Cristen Maher from AOL Music's The Boombox called the song "an uplifting ballad...about the ups and downs that occur when two people are in love. The overall message is that when it comes to love, nothing can stand in the way of making things right." Maher adds "Jackson — who is still coping with the loss of her brother Michael — drew inspiration from her grief for her theatrical performance...transferring her sorrow beautifully into a moving and deeply heartfelt ballad." Idolator stated that the song "reminds us that, despite all the overproduction and sexed-up whispering on her last few singles, Janet can actually still deliver solid vocals—something that was hardly apparent on “We Are The World 25". Entertainment Weekly described the song as an "airy ballad, on which she cries out for more communication in a troubled relationship." Deborah Vankin of The Los Angeles Times called it "a touching, melodic ballad about truth, trust and relationships", adding that the song is "generating almost as much Oscar buzz as it feels