 Online" called the song to be unlikely inspiring to the listeners to hit the dance floor.Jon Pareles from "The New York Times", while reviewing the Live Earth concert in London, said that the song and its lyrics like "Don’t you give up/it’s not so bad" are not exactly eloquent.While reviewing Madonna's album "Hard Candy", he commented that "Hey You" failed to be the equivalent of Madonna's cover version of John Lennon's song "Imagine".