It was written by Max Martin, Shellback, Savan Kotecha, and Usher. It was produced by Max Martin and Shellback. This was the same group who wrote and produced Usher's 2010 single "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love". "Scream" is an electropop song. It has dance-pop beats. The song talks about sexual situations. Many music critics called it a "club song". They also said that it is similar to Usher's older songs.