The King & I received generally mixed reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 48 based on 10 reviews.[4]HipHopDX critic Jesse Fairfax called the album a "worthwhile concept that once deserved to see the light of day," but noted that "excessive filler and intermissions dull the shine of" the release.[7] Hannah J. Davis, writing for The Guardian, noted: "With vocals smoother than a vat of cocoa butter, Evans moves from poignant duet to "Juicy"-style sexathon alongside [The Notorious B.I.G. ], although – naturally – it lacks a certain improvisation and cohesion."[6]AllMusic editor Andy Kellman felt that "the constant recycling, along with the quantity and variety of other voices, detract from some of Evans' best, most impassioned performances, which are matched with some solid work from a roster of co-producers."[5]
Pitchfork editor Evan Rytlewski found that while "the project oozes affection for Biggie, it's yet another gangly, recycled posthumous album of verses we've all heard before [...] The muse is solid, and there's something sweet about the idea that after all these years, Biggie still brings out the best in Evans. Now if only his reconstituted raps weren't plastered over every inch of the record."[1]Spin critic Brian Josephs called the album "an unconvincing Biggie tribute" and added: "It's a sweet sentiment, but The King & I wastes too much energy centering a known relationship on these formless descriptions, a flaw that turns a 72-minute project into a poshly produced endurance contest. The classicist early-aughts R&B is informed by Evans' nostalgic impulse, but the effect is often touristic rather than resonant."[2] Damien Morris from The Observer noted that The Notorious B.I.G. "was never boring, unlike this compilation of tired productions and mawkish interludes. Duets should be meetings of equals. Instead, the greatest rapper of all time is propped up slack-jawed and open-eyed in the corner of each track,"[9]
Commercial performance
In the United States of America The King & I debuted at number 65 on the Billboard 200, with 9,000 album-equivalent units.[10] By February 2018, it sold 24,000 copies in the United States.[11]
