In his review for Soul in Stereo, Edward Bowser wrote that "Keith doesn't stray far from his roots [but] sometimes, though, the album is a little too safe [...] and other times, Keith uncharacteristically stumbles out of his comfort zone." He cocluded: ""While not as stellar as Keith's '08 studio comeback Just Me, Ridin' Solo will fill the void of left by current R&B artists who are more concerned with creating crappy pop songs these days."[2]AllMusic editor Andy Kellman found that "due to a number of factors, Ridin' Solo is the least significant volume of Sweat's discography [...] Sweat can't be knocked for riding the Auto-Tune gravy train, not when his use of vocal effects can be traced back 20-plus years. Then again, Ridin' Solo, the singer's tenth proper studio album, is slathered in it. Part of that is out of necessity; Sweat's voice, once a smooth whine, often hits a grainy strain, and it's also cloaked by a number of background vocalists who occasionally step in front to perform the hooks."[1]
Ridin' Solo debuted and peaked at number 13 on the US Billboard 200,[3] with first week sales of 37,000 copies.[4] The album also opened at number one on the US Independent Albums chart, Sweat's first album to do so,[5] and peaked at number four on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, becoming his tenth studio album to enter the top ten of the chart.[6]
