Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Chicago Tribune
Encyclopedia of Popular Music
Entertainment Weekly	A−
Los Angeles Times
NME	4/10
Rolling Stone
The Rolling Stone Album Guide
The Source	4.5/5
Spin	9/10

Illadelph Halflife is the third studio album by American hip hop band The Roots, released September 24, 1996 on Geffen Records. It features a tougher and broader sound than their previous album, Do You Want More?!!!??! (1995). The album also contains integration of programmed drums and guest contributions by R&B musicians such as Amel Larrieux and D'Angelo, as well as jazz musicians such as David Murray, Steve Coleman, Cassandra Wilson, Graham Haynes. In 1998, the album was selected as one of The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums. In 2006, the album was selected as one of Hip-Hop Connection's 100 Best Rap Albums from 1995 to 2005.

The New York Times writer Neil Strauss called the album "one of the year's best rap offerings" and wrote that "The Roots move indiscriminately from politically conscious lyrics (not just about black America but also about Bosnia, the Olympics and terrorism) to silly rhymes ('roam like a cellular phone/far from home')".The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that "while it doesn't sacrifice a smidgen of street-level intensity, it reaffirms just how far-reaching (and how far removed from the gangsta stereotype) hip-hop can be".The Source magazine called it "a thoughtful musical endeavor ... an emotional and spiritually fulfilling aural experience".Spin described it as "an artistic progression, and added confirmation of the Roots' place at hip-hop's vanguard".The San Diego Union-Tribune's Jeff Niesel stated "the Roots find the perfect mixture of jazz and hip-hop for their songs about the hardships of urban life".

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Wikipedia