The song was a hit on U.S. radio before being issued as a single. On its release, "Hypnotize" entered the "Billboard" Hot 100 at number two, right behind labelmate and co-writer and co-producer Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs ("Can't Nobody Hold Me Down"). When "Hypnotize" reached number one two weeks later, it made The Notorious B.I.G. the fifth artist in Hot 100 history to have a posthumous chart-topper ("see List of Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones"). It also gave back-to-back number-one hits to Combs' Bad Boy Records label. Nominated for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 1998 Grammy Awards, it lost to "Men in Black" by Will Smith. The single reached number 10 in the UK, B.I.G.'s first top 10 hit in that country. Kris Ex of Pitchfork wrote "Big was a master of flow, sounding unforced and unlabored over a bevy of pristine, hi-fidelity maximalist beats that seemed to always bow to his intent."