Critical Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | |
| BBC Music | (favorable) |
| Robert Christgau | |
| Entertainment Weekly | A |
| Los Angeles Times | |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | |
What's the 411 received generally favorable reviews from music critics. Blige received comparisons to recording artists Chaka Khan, Caron Wheeler and Anita Baker. Her voice was described as "powerful" and "soulful". David O'Donnell of BBC Music complimented Blige's "sweet, soulful vocals", in line with Puff Daddy's "rough, jagged, hip-hop beats made for a winning combination that remains". The album led to Blige being dubbed as the reigning "Queen of Hip Hop Soul". Stanton Swihart of Allmusic called the album "the decade's most explosive, coming-out displays of pure singing prowess". O'Donnell argued that the album is "one of the most important albums of the nineties". The album earned Blige two Soul Train Music Awards in 1993: Best New R&B Artist and Best R&B Album, Female.
What's the 411? peaked at number six on the Billboard 200 and topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It also peaked at number 53 on the UK Albums Chart. It was certified three times Platinum by the RIAA. Blige became the best new female R&B artist of 1993 in the United States. As of August 2010, the album has sold 3,318,000 copies in the US.
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