Critical reception
The Reason garnered positive reviews from music critics who commended the record's East Coast production but questioned Sigel's abilities as a credible rapper. Andy Capper of NME found some familiarity in the album's beats but praised Sigel's dark-yet-intriguing delivery along with a talented list of guest artists, calling it "one of the best hardcore rap records of the year 2001." [6] Steve 'Flash' Juon of RapReviews praised the lyrical delivery and production for being an upgrade from Sigel's debut effort The Truth , saying that, "[I]n the pantheon of Philadelphia rap from The Roots to Will Smith, make room for a mack (bitch) - he's definitely earned his right to shine." [8] Entertainment Weekly 's Evan Serpick said that, "Sigel will never sound as urgent as Chuck D or as smooth as Method Man, but the Jay-Z protégé makes up for it with smarter-than-average gangsta lyrics and eclectic hip-hop beats." [3] Nick Catucci of Blender wrote that, "Throughout the disc, Beanie stalks through the subdued bounce of big, loose piano and horn riffs, his smooth but steely flow intact. There's a sequel to his first album's not-so-pretty prison tale "What Ya Life Like" here, but it's best hearing about Beans's life when he's feeling nice, not nasty." [2]
AllMusic writer Bret Love commended the production for remaining consistent and Sigel's persona of a street smart hustler but found it running its course as the album continued, concluding that "Sigel's sophomore effort isn't so much an artistic step forward as it is a step sideways." [1] HipHopDX writer Affrikka said that despite the first two tracks, the record starts to fall off into mediocre un-originality, saying that "Overall, the experience leaves you wanting more from the executive producing credit that Jay-Z takes. It’s almost as if anyone involved in this project expected listeners to not get past the first couple songs." [4] Soren Baker, writing for the Los Angeles Times , commented that "[T]he normally assertive and interesting Philadelphia rapper flows like a sloth on nearly every cut of his second album, failing to elicit much excitement despite the solid, hard-core production." [5] Robert Christgau graded the album as a "dud", [9] indicating "a bad record whose details rarely merit further thought." [11]
