The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart and was certified Platinum by the RIAA, selling over 138,000 copies in its first week of release.

[4] The album features guest contributions by Lil' Kim, Foxy Brown, Babyface, Blackstreet, Teddy Riley, Too $hort, Sauce Money and Puff Daddy.

It displayed a shift from the mafioso rap themes of Reasonable Doubt to the so-called "jiggy" era of late 90s hip-hop, often credited to videos and albums from Puff Daddy and his Bad Boy record label's roster of artists including The Notorious B.I.G.

In the interview, he explained how the album was not as fun to record as his debut, (Reasonable Doubt (1996)), and that certain tracks, such as "The City is Mine", were influenced by the rapper's death.

[18] He named "(Always Be My) Sunshine" and "Real Niggaz" as highlights while calling Jay-Z "arrogant yet diffident, ruthless yet cute—a scary original".

[10] Chris Norris of Spin said Jay-Z's raps are often "in search of meaty ideas or distinctive charm—skills without pleasure", and was also critical of the production.