“See? Even America supports my actually having a comeback!”

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[6.25]

Ramzi Awn: Ciara sounds smokier than usual, and it’s doing good things for her. “I can teach you a lotta cool shit,” she claims, and I buy it; Ciara hasn’t been this hellbent for leather since “High Price.” She’s been riding a thin line between glory and “Turn It Up,” so “Sweat” is well-timed, and the thin gauze of art-pop works in its favor.
[7]

Will Adams: My favorite aspect of dubstep is the way it toys with half- and double-time tempo; are you at 140 or 70 BPM? It’s disorienting and fascinating. “Sweat” isn’t dubstep, but its flurry of snare sounds creates that same tension. Ciara and 2 Chainz do just enough to manage it, but the prize is waiting for those dizzying instrumental breaks where the vocals stutter and that clipped synth bell pings in octaves. Bonus point for what sounds like a Speak & Spell sample.
[7]

Jonathan Bogart: I would say this is Ciara’s attempt to pull off what Kelly Rowland did with “Motivation” — an unlikely comeback with a powerfully-produced track that runs slower than it feels, with the moment’s hot rapper providing just enough meme-worthy blurts to be memorable — but I don’t want to sound like that’s not a good thing.
[7]

Brad Shoup: Like Claire Lobenfeld said, Ciara’s as much a choreographer as a singer, to the point that “sweat” might as well be her ad-lib from here on out. She’s on the lower end of her register, which works for the urgency of the chorus, not so much for the verses. Speaking of, 2 Chainz’s contribution is my favorite of his since that Nelly track. I dunno why he chose now to talk about ectodermal dysplasia, but The More You Know.
[6]

Colin Small: 2 Chainz always manages to throw off the mood of a song while delivering some amazingly ridiculous line at the same time. His double-edged flow is subdued here, but he still manages to say “pheromones, no body odor.” Ciara’s voice has much more to offer than this particular version of crunk&B allows.
[5]

Alfred Soto: “Pheromones and no body odor” describes the impression left by this track: enticing but lacking body heat. Ciara projects her usual diffidence over a hydraulic beat. 
[5]

Anthony Easton: I love Ciara, but apparently liking 2 Chainz makes me a douchebag. I don’t quite know how to play the middle, but Ciara has a beautiful flow and an excellent way of moving between singing and rapping. 
[8]

Katherine St Asaph: A couple fantastic verses, dark and driven and frankly scary, ruined by their underwritten chorus. 2 Chainz doesn’t quite ruin them further, but nobody’s pretending his presence is more than industry-mandated. Half his bit doesn’t even keep the backing track, the equivalent of someone yanking the safety clip off the machine. And it’s pointless, anyway; Ciara couldn’t possibly get her comeback off a track this monotone.
[5]