dᵻspˈaɪt ɪts sɪɡnˈɪfɪkənt ˈɪmpækt ˌɔn hˈɪp hˈɑːp æt ðə tˈaɪm, ɪlmˈæɾɪk dɪdnˌɑːt ɛkspˈiəɹɪəns ðə lˈɑːɹdʒɚ sˈeɪlz ʌv mˈoʊst mˈeɪdʒɚ ɹᵻlˈiːsᵻz ʌvðə dˈeɪ, dˈuː ɪn pˈɑːɹt tə nˈæs ʃˈaɪ pˌɜːsənˈælᵻɾi ænd wɪθdɹˈɔːl fɹʌm pɹəmˈoʊɾɪŋ ðə ɹˈɛkɚd.
Despite its significant impact on hip hop at the time, Illmatic did not experience the larger sales of most major releases of the day, due in part to Nas' shy personality and withdrawal from promoting the record.