 He also criticized the social commentary-filled lyrics on songs like "Come to Mama" and "Angel Down".Jon Caramanica of "The New York Times" noted the album's elemental sound did not come as a surprise and felt that it was not "daring or radical—it's logical, a rejoinder to her past and also to the candy-striped pop that surrounds her".In the United States, "Joanne" debuted at number one on the "Billboard" 200, moving 201,000 album-equivalent units of which 170,000 were pure sales, according to Nielsen SoundScan.