Andrew Hampp of Billboard felt that it is "kindling a different kind of heat on this slow jam, a neo-soul duet with Maxwell that also features guitar work from Gary Clark Jr. Keys doesn't have many adult love-making ballads to her name, as they can often be bogged down by post-Barry White clichés or latter-period Janet Jackson TMI. But with help from Maxwell's falsetto-drenched guest verse, "Fire We Make" is worthy of its likely place on many bedroom playlists." BBC Music's Daryl Easlea found that "the beautiful, sensual" song was "all muted horns and synth bass, a textbook quiet storm. The more you hear this track, the deeper you fall in love with it." Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times wrote that "in the slow-burning "Fire We Make," doubles down on the here-and-now vibe, trading breathy vocal lines with Maxwell over fuzzy soul-blues guitar by Gary Clark Jr." Stephen M. Deusner from Pitchfork Media called the song "an old-fashioned slow jam that doesn't have a whole lot of actual song to it and honestly doesn't need it. Instead, it's an excuse for vocal and sexual fireworks from two of R&B's strongest singers, with Keys' bold voice evocatively contrasting Maxwell's softer, slightly hoarse delivery." Anupa Mistry from Now dubbed "Fire We Make" the "record’s high point" and a "scorching slow jam." Less enthusiastic, Facts Chris Kelly wrote that the track "isn’t bad, per se, but it apes the sensuality of songs like "Diary" and "Dragon Days"." Similarly, Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune noted that "in their between-the-sheets duet on “Fire We Make,” Keys and Maxwell take turns tossing clichés about candles, heat and moths being drawn to the flame. Gary Clark Jr. arrives with a guitar solo that throws some much needed dissonance at the sleep-walking couple, but it’s too late." Somewhat critical with the album, Slant Magazine's Eric Henderson found that Keys's "flames more believably and compellingly stoked in the denouement of "Fire We Make," a sultry duet with Maxwell's ever-promiscuous falsetto warbling pillow talk." Both The Boston Globe and Rap-Up ranked the song among their favorite tracks on the album alongside "Girl on Fire,” “Tears Always Win,” and “Not Even the King”.”
Music video
The music video for "Fire We Make" was filmed by American director Chris Robinson in New Orleans, Louisiana in April 2013, with parts of the video shot inside a boarding house in the Garden District and the French Quarter neighborhoods respectively. It marked Keys' tenth collaboration with him. Production was helmed by Nina Miller for Robinson's Robot Films, while Bradford Young served as the video's director of photography; editing was handled by Bill Yukich. The video simultaneously premiered on BET's show 106 & Park and music video website Vevo on April 23, 2013 at 6pm.
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Girl on Fire.
