Balance & Options

Balance & Options received positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Joseph Patel, in his review for Rolling Stone, wrote that it "could be the most unexpectedly progressive hip-hop album of the year". Soren Baker, writing for Los Angeles Times, thought that "the music on Balance & Options is among the most innovative and textured hip-hop has to offer", while also commending DJ Quik's lyrics that "show tremendous insight and depth". Steve Juon of RapReviews called it "an A+ summer album to ride to", commending its "excellent guest roster". Steve Jones of USA Today thought the album "pulsates with the kind of woofer-rattling funk you've come to expect from the West Coast", adding that it lacks "surprises or innovation". Vibe's Dimitri Ehrlich thought that DJ Quik "managed to strike a balance between the thuggery of his youth and the peacefulness to which he now aspires".

Ed Rice of The Source wrote: "In days past, Balance & Options would be a respectable offering, but it stumbles against the current field and falls short of the quality of even Quik's last effort." He concluded the review saying that the album's best parts, which show the album's potential, are "scattered like buried treasure, weighing heavily toward the LP's end". Nathan Rabin from The A.V. Club called the album a "mixed bag". He praised it for "moving away from gangsta-oriented lyrics in favor of a more self-consciously 'positive' worldview", but also criticized it for its "rampant misogyny and homophobia", which he found "ideologically troubling" as he believed it does not fit the album's overall feel.

Accolades

In 2012, Kendrick Lamar included the album on his "Complex Top 25 Favorite Albums" list and wrote that "My homeboy Earl would play that album all day. One of the first songs on there 'I Don't Wanna Party Wit U' is one I could remember that really jumps out to me and really gave me that feel. It was summertime, we was running around and that was always playing."

The album debuted at number 18 on the Billboard 200 chart and number 5 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, selling 68,000 copies in its first week. It spent 13 weeks on the Billboard 200. As of March 21, 2002, the album has sold over 324,000 copies in the United States. It was his first album not certified by the RIAA.

Looking back, DJ Quik said: "Balance & Options was the record that didn't sell as much as the other ones. Music started to change. Downloads came in around that time, that's when the MP3 thing started to explode, more than just Shawn Fanning and Napster. People started stealing music and the business was changing."

Note

•  • (co.) Co-producer

Sample credits

• "Pitch In Ona Party" contains sample of "We Still Party" - earlier Quik's track, from his previous album, Rhythm-al-ism.
• "You Ain't Fresh" contains portions of "You Ain't Fresh" by Boogie Boys.
• "Quikker Said Than Dunn" contains samples of "Eazy-er Said Than Dunn" by Eazy-E.
• "Do Whatcha Want" contains samples of "Let's Have Some Fun" by the Bar-Kays.

Credits for Balance & Options adapted from AllMusic.