"Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik" was met with generally positive reviews. James Bernard of "Entertainment Weekly" preferred the album's Southern hip hop over "Arrested Development's suspiciously peppy, idealized version of down-home" and stated, "it's about time someone told today's weed-obsessed youth to 'get up, get out and get something/Don't spend all your time trying to get high.'" Dennis Hunt of the "Los Angeles Times" cited "Git Up, Git Out" as the album's highlight and commended the duo's "sauntering, hard-core tales of the 'hood", writing that they "bristle with clever humor and sharp insights rather than rage." Rob Marriott of "The Source" complimented the duo's "organic" P-Funk influence and praised their lyrics' honesty, commenting that "while their rhyme style may swing a little too close to Hiero for my comfort, what really makes this album so listenable is that ... truthfulness reigns." However, Robert Christgau dismissed the album as a "" in his consumer guide for "The Village Voice".