The song was panned by critics and music industry commentators for its support of conspiracy theories and its anti-Semitism. Vulture music critic Nate Jones commented, "It’s called 'Flatline,' which is both a reference to the horizon of the Earth and also a fitting description of B.o.B’s career."[5]Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, issued a statement saying that B.o.B's "lyrics are irresponsible and could potentially promote anti-Semitic beliefs, especially in those people who might already be infected by such notions."[6]
Following criticism, B.o.B removed the song from his SoundCloud account, but it survives on YouTube and other sites where it was reposted.[7] In April 2016, B.o.B included the song on a mixtape titled E.A.R.T.H. (Educational Avatar Reality Training Habitat), but the song lyrics had been rewritten as titled as pt. 2.[8][9]
In response to B.o.B's Twitter arguments with Neil deGrasse Tyson, the latter's nephew, an amateur rapper using the stage name Ellect, released a diss track of his own titled "Flat to Fact" which echoes several of his uncle's talking points and features Tyson himself providing spoken word interjections.[5]