Lauryn Noelle Hill is an American
singer-songwriterSinger-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
,
record producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, and actress.
Early in her career, she established her reputation as a member of the Fugees. In 1998, she launched her solo career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album,
The Miseducation of Lauryn HillThe Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the debut solo album by American musician Lauryn Hill, released August 25, 1998, on Columbia Records. Recording sessions for the album took place from late 1997 to June 1998, and were held primarily at Tuff Gong Studios in Jamaica...
. The recording earned Hill five Grammy Awards, including the coveted
Album of the YearThe Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer...
and
Best New ArtistThe Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967...
.
Following the success of her debut album, Hill largely dropped out of public view, in part due to her displeasure with fame and the music industry. After a four-year hiatus, she released
MTV Unplugged No. 2.0MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 is a live album by American hip hop/soul artist Lauryn Hill. The performance comes from her 2002 MTV Unplugged special recorded on July 21, 2001 at MTV Studios in Times Square, New York City. The album has sold over one million copies in the United States and over 1.5 million...
, a live recording of "deeply personal songs" performed mostly solo with an acoustic guitar. In more recent years, she has recorded songs for soundtracks and mixtapes, as well as performing live at several music festivals. Hill has six children, five of whom are with
Rohan MarleyRohan Anthony Marley is the son of late reggae artist Bob Marley and Janet Hunt.A 1991 graduate of Miami Palmetto Senior High School, Marley played linebacker for the University of Miami football team, where he played alongside players like Dwayne Johnson and Ray Lewis. In 1993 he led the...
, the son of
reggaeReggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
musician
Bob MarleyRobert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
. To date, she still avoids publicity.
Early life
Lauryn Hill was born in
South Orange, New Jersey-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 16,964 people, 5,522 households, and 3,766 families residing in the township. The population density was 5,945.3 people per square mile . There were 5,671 housing units at an average density of 1,987.5 per square mile...
, the second of two children born to high school English teacher Valerie Hill and computer programmer Mal Hill. As a child, Hill listened to her parents' Motown 1960s
soulSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
records. Music was a central part of the Hill home. Mal Hill sang at weddings, Valerie played the piano, and Lauryn's older brother Malaney played the saxophone, guitar, drums, harmonica, and piano. In 1988, Hill appeared as an Amateur Night contestant on It's Showtime at the Apollo. She sang her own version of
Smokey RobinsonWilliam "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
's song "Who's Lovin' You?", where she was booed tremendously, but persevered and ended up with audience applause.
Hill was childhood friends with actor
Zach BraffZachary Israel "Zach" Braff is an American actor, screenwriter, producer, comedian, and director. Braff first became known in 2001 for his role as Dr. John Dorian on the television series Scrubs, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award and three Golden Globe Awards.In 2004, Braff made his...
and both graduated from Maplewood, New Jersey's
Columbia High SchoolColumbia High School is a four-year comprehensive regional public high school located at 17 Parker Avenue in Maplewood, New Jersey, which serves students in grades nine through twelve within the South Orange-Maplewood School District, which includes Maplewood and South Orange Townships...
in 1993, where Hill was an active student, cheerleader, and performer. Braff has spoken of Hill attending his Bar Mitzvah in 1988. Hill enrolled at
Columbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1993 and attended for nearly a full year before dropping out to pursue her entertainment career.
Acting career
Hill began her acting career at a young age, appearing on the soap opera
As The World TurnsAs the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light...
as Kira Johnson. In 1993, she co-starred in
Sister Act 2: Back in the HabitSister Act 2: Back In The Habit is a 1993 comedy film starring Whoopi Goldberg. Directed by Bill Duke, and released by Touchstone Pictures, it is the sequel to the successful 1992 film Sister Act...
as Rita Louise Watson, in which she performed the songs "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" (a duet with
Tanya Blount-Early life and education:Morgan State University, where she majored in psychology and sang in the university choir.-Career:She secured a major recording deal with Polydor now Island/Def Jam Records at age 19 and by 20 was featured in the film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, where she performed a...
) and "Joyful, Joyful". It was in this role that she first came to national prominence, with
Roger EbertRoger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
calling her "the girl with the big joyful voice". Her other acting work includes the play Club XII with
MC LyteMC Lyte is an American rapper who first gained fame in the late-1980s becoming the first solo female rapper to release a full album with 1988's critically acclaimed Lyte as a Rock.-Early life:...
, and the motion pictures
King of the HillKing of the Hill is a 1993 film, Steven Soderbergh's third feature film, and the second he directed from his own screenplay following his 1989 Palme d'Or-winning effort sex, lies, and videotape. It too was nominated for the Palme d'Or, at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival.-Production:Based on the...
,
Hav PlentyHav Plenty is a 1997 American independent film released by Miramax Films, based on an eventful weekend in the life of Lee Plenty , written and directed by Cherot...
, and
RestaurantRestaurant is a 1998 independent film starring Adrien Brody, Elise Neal, David Moscow and Simon Baker. Written by Tom Cudworth and directed by Eric Bross, Restaurant was the follow-up to this writing–directing duo's first film, TenBenny, which also starred Adrien Brody...
. After her rise to musical stardom, she reportedly turned down roles in
Charlie's AngelsCharlie's Angels is a 2000 American action comedy film directed by McG, starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu as three women working for a private investigation agency...
,
The Bourne IdentityThe Bourne Identity is a 2002 American spy film loosely based on Robert Ludlum's novel of the same name. It stars Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, an amnesiac attempting to discover his true identity amidst a clandestine conspiracy within the Central Intelligence Agency . The film also stars Franka...
,
The MexicanThe Mexican is a 2001 American romantic comedy film directed by Gore Verbinski and starring Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts, with a plot that is an unusual mixture of romantic comedy and road movie....
,
The Matrix ReloadedThe Matrix Reloaded is a 2003 American science fiction film and the second installment in The Matrix trilogy, written and directed by the Wachowskis. It premiered on May 7, 2003, in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, and went on general release by Warner Bros. in North American theaters on May 15,...
and
The Matrix RevolutionsThe Matrix Revolutions is a 2003 American science fiction film and the third installment of The Matrix trilogy. The film was released six months following The Matrix Reloaded. The film was written and directed by the Wachowski brothers and released simultaneously in sixty countries on November 5,...
. She appeared on the soundtrack to
Conspiracy TheoryConspiracy Theory is a 1997 American action thriller film directed by Richard Donner.The original screenplay by Brian Helgeland centers on an eccentric taxi driver who believes many world events are triggered by government conspiracies, and the U.S...
in 1996 with "
Can't Take My Eyes Off You"Can't Take My Eyes Off You" is a 1967 single by Frankie Valli. The song was among Valli's biggest hits, reaching #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning a gold record. It was Valli's biggest "solo" hit until he hit #1 in 1975 with "My Eyes Adored You"...
", and on
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya SisterhoodDivine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood is a 2002 American comedy-drama film starring Sandra Bullock and Ashley Judd, directed and written by Callie Khouri...
in 2002 with the track "Selah".
1991–1996: The Fugees
The Refugee Camp ("Fugees") formed after
Prakazrel "Pras" MichelPrakazrel Samuel Michel, known as Pras, is a Grammy Award-winning Haitian-American rapper, actor, film producer, and member of the hip hop trio The Fugees.-Early life:...
approached Hill in high school about joining a music group he was creating. Soon after, she met Michel's cousin and fellow
HaïtiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an,
Wyclef JeanWyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
. At some point, Hill was nicknamed "L Boogie", as she began to convert her poetic writing into rap verses. Hill's singing gained worldwide acclaim with the Fugees' remake of "
Killing Me Softly with His Song"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a 1971 song composed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. It has been covered by numerous artists, most notably by Roberta Flack whose version topped the U.S...
", accompanied by a sample from
Rotary ConnectionRotary Connection was an American psychedelic soul band, formed in Chicago in 1966. The highly experimental band was the idea of Marshall Chess, son of Chess Records founder Leonard Chess. Marshall was the director behind a start-up label, Cadet Concept Records, and wanted to focus on music outside...
's "Memory Band".
The Fugees' first album,
Blunted on RealityBlunted on Reality is the debut album released by hip hop group The Fugees. The album was written and recorded by the group in 1992, however, following a long dispute with their record company, the album was not released until February 1, 1994. Most versions of the album contain seventeen tracks,...
, peaked at No. 49 on the U.S. Hot 100. The album sold over two million copies worldwide. Blunted on Reality was followed by
The ScoreThe Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide February 13, 1996 on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip hop music scene in the...
, a multi-platinum,
GrammyA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
-winning album that established two of the three Fugees as international rap stars. Singles from The Score include "
Ready or Not"Ready or Not" is a song by The Fugees, from their second studio album The Score . The song contains a sample of "Boadicea" by Enya, and its chorus is based on "Ready or Not Here I Come " by The Delfonics. The song spent two weeks atop the UK Singles Chart in September 1996...
", "
Fu-Gee-La"Fu-Gee-La" is the first single from the Fugees' second album, The Score. The song, which was produced by Salaam Remi, contains a sample of "If Loving You Is Wrong, I Don't Want To Be Right" by Ramsey Lewis, and its chorus is based on "Ooo La La La" by Teena Marie...
", "
No Woman, No Cry"No Woman, No Cry" is a reggae song by Bob Marley & The Wailers. The song first became known in 1974 through the studio album Natty Dread. The live version from the 1975 album Live! is perhaps best known — it was this version which was released on the greatest hits compilation Legend. The original...
", and "
Killing Me Softly"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a 1971 song composed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. It has been covered by numerous artists, most notably by Roberta Flack whose version topped the U.S...
".
1997–1999:The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
In 1997, Hill began production on an album that would eventually become
The Miseducation of Lauryn HillThe Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the debut solo album by American musician Lauryn Hill, released August 25, 1998, on Columbia Records. Recording sessions for the album took place from late 1997 to June 1998, and were held primarily at Tuff Gong Studios in Jamaica...
. The title was inspired by
The Mis-Education of the NegroThe Mis-Education of the Negro is a book originally published in 1933 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson. The thesis of Dr. Woodson's book is that African-Americans of his day were being culturally indoctrinated, rather than taught, in American schools...
book by
Carter G. WoodsonCarter Godwin Woodson was an African-American historian, author, journalist and the founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. Woodson was one of the first scholars to study African American history. A founder of Journal of Negro History , Dr...
and
The Education of Sonny CarsonThe Education of Sonny Carson is a 1974 film based on the best-selling autobiography of Sonny Carson, who joined a gang and committed petty crime before being sent to prison...
, a film and autobiographical novel. The album featured contributions from
D'AngeloMichael Eugene Archer , better known by his stage name D'Angelo, is an American R&B and neo soul singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He is known for his production and songwriting talents as much as for his vocal abilities, and often draws comparisons to his influences,...
,
Carlos SantanaCarlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
,
Mary J. BligeMary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
and a then-unknown
John LegendJohn Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...
. Songs for the album were largely written in an
atticAn attic is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building . Attic is generally the American/Canadian reference to it...
studio in South Orange,
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and recorded at
Chung King StudiosChung King Recording Studios, formerly known as The Chung King House Of Metal, is a New York City recording studio founded by John King with financial backing of the Etches brothers and engineer expertise of Steve Ett became a site of many classic punk and hip hop recordings...
in Jamaica. Wyclef Jean initially did not support Hill recording a solo album, but eventually offered his production help; Hill turned him down. Several songs on the album concerned her frustrations with The Fugees; "I Used to Love Him" dealt with the break-down of the relationship between Hill and Wyclef Jean. "To Zion" spoke about her decision to have her first baby, even though many at the time encouraged her to
abortAbortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
the pregnancy so as to not interfere with her blossoming career.
The Miseducation contained several interludes of a teacher speaking to what is implied to be a classroom of children; in fact, the "teacher" was played by Ras Baraka (a poet, educator and politician) speaking to a group of kids in the living room of Hill's New Jersey home. The singer requested that Baraka speak to the children about the concept of love, and he improvised the lecture. Though The Miseducation was largely a collaborative work between Hill and a group of musicians known as New Ark (Vada Nobles, Rasheem Pugh, Tejumold and Johari Newton), there was "label pressure to do the
PrincePrince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
thing," wherein all tracks would be credited as "written and produced by" the artist with little outside help. While recording the album, when Hill was asked about providing contracts or documentation to the musicians, she replied, "We all love each other. This ain't about documents. This is blessed." Hill, her management, and her record label were sued in 1998 by New Ark, claiming to be the primary songwriters on two tracks, and major contributors on several others. The suit was settled out of court in February 2001 for a reported $5 million.
In 1998, Hill released The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which was both critically and commercially successful. It sold over 423,000 copies in its first week and topped the Billboard 200 albums chart for four weeks and the Billboard R&B Album chart for six weeks; it would go on to sell more than 18 million copies over the next decade. The first single off the album was "Lost Ones" (US #27), released in Spring 1998. The second was "
Doo Wop (That Thing)"Doo Wop " is the debut single from American R&B/Hip-Hop artist Lauryn Hill. The song is taken from debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Written and produced by Hill, the song was released as the album's lead single in October 1998. It was Hill's first and only Billboard Hot 100...
", which reached No. 1 in the Billboard charts. Other singles released off the album were "
Ex-Factor"Ex-Factor" is the third single from American recording artist Lauryn Hill from her debut solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill . It features a sample of "Can It Be All So Simple", a song by Wu-Tang Clan...
" (US #21), "
Everything Is Everything"Everything Is Everything" is the fourth single from American Hip Hop/R&B artist Lauryn Hill's debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.-Song information:...
" (US #35), and "To Zion".
At the 1999
Grammy AwardA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s, Hill broke records by becoming both the first woman ever to be nominated in ten categories in a single year, and the first woman to win five times in one night. Hill won the awards for
Album of the YearThe Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer...
(beating
MadonnaMadonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
's critically acclaimed
Ray of LightRay of Light is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Madonna, released on March 3, 1998 by Maverick Records and distributed by Warner Bros. Records. After giving birth to her daughter Lourdes, Madonna collaborated with Patrick Leonard and William Orbit in developing the album...
and
Shania TwainShania Twain, OC is a Canadian country pop singer-songwriter. Her album The Woman in Me , brought her fame and her 1997 album Come On Over, became the best-selling album of all time by a female musician in any genre, and the best-selling country album of all time. It has sold over 40 million...
's bestselling
Come on OverCome On Over is the third studio album recorded by Canadian singer Shania Twain. It was released on November 4, 1997. It became the world's best-selling country music album and the best-selling studio album ever released by a female artist in any genre...
),
Best R&B AlbumThe Grammy Award for Best R&B Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works on albums in the R&B music genre...
,
Best R&B SongThe Grammy Award for Best R&B Song has been awarded since 1959. From 1969 to 2000 it was known as the Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Song, from 1962 to 1968 it was known as Best Rhythm & Blues Recording, and from 1959-1961 as Best Rhythm & Blues Performance...
,
Best Female R&B Vocal PerformanceThe Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for quality R&B songs...
, and
Best New ArtistThe Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967...
. Between 1998 and 1999, Hill earned 25 million USD from record sales and touring.
Hill became a national media icon, as magazines ranging from
TimeTime is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
to
EsquireEsquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
to Teen People vied to put her on their covers. In the late 1990s, Hill was noted by some as a humanitarian. In 1996 she received an Essence Award for work including the 1996 founding of the Refugee Project (an outreach organization that supports a two-week overnight camp for at-risk youth), her support of well-building projects in Kenya and Uganda, and for staging a rap concert in
HarlemHarlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
to promote
voter registrationVoter registration is the requirement in some democracies for citizens and residents to check in with some central registry specifically for the purpose of being allowed to vote in elections. An effort to get people to register is known as a voter registration drive.-Centralized/compulsory vs...
. In 1999 Hill received three awards at the 30th Annual NAACP Image Awards. Also in 1999,
EbonyEbony, a monthly magazine for the African-American market, was founded by John H. Johnson and has published continuously since the autumn of 1945...
named her one of "100+ Most Influential Black Americans". She was named with Congressman
Jesse Jackson, Jr.Jesse Louis Jackson, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since the special election in 1995. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
and others among the "10 For Tomorrow," in the EBONY 2000: Special Millennium Issue.
Racial controversy
In 1998, a caller on The Howard Stern Show mentioned that he heard Lauryn Hill state on MTV "I would rather have my family starve than have white people buy my albums". MTV publicly disclaimed the quotation, and after a discussion on The Howard Stern Show, Hill herself called in from Norway to refute the rumor, stating "How can I possibly be a racist? My music is universal music. And I believe in God. If I believe in God, then I have to love all of God's creations. There can be no
segregationRacial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
". She also told Teen People magazine "There's absolutely nothing racist about anything in my heart". In a later interview with MTV, Hill stated "Everybody has to be really careful on what they read and hear. Because of what some radio personality chose to say, he had a bunch of people believing something that they never actually seen or heard themselves, but just heard a rumor." As this rumor would continue through the press, Hill would repeatedly assert in later interviews that this accusation was false, that she never made such statements, would never make such statements, and that she is in no way racist.
2000–2003: Self-Imposed Exile and MTV Unplugged No. 2.0
After the release of her debut album, she explored other methods of expressing herself, including creating an extensive amount of music, poetry, and clothing designs. She started writing a screenplay about the life of
Bob MarleyRobert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
, in which she planned to act as his wife
RitaAlpharita Constantia Anderson , better known as Rita Marley, and sometimes called "Nana Rita", is the widow of reggae legend/musician Bob Marley, and a member of the trio the I Threes, Bob Marley's backup singers.-Biography:...
. She also began producing a
romantic comedyRomantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...
about
soul foodSoul food cuisine consists of a selection of foods traditional in the cuisine of African Americans. It is closely related to the cuisine of the Southern United States...
with a working title of Sauce, and accepted a starring role in the
film adaptationBeloved is a 1998 film based on Toni Morrison's 1987 novel of the same name. It was directed by Jonathan Demme, and was produced by Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Productions. The film stars Oprah Winfrey and Danny Glover.-Plot:...
of
Toni MorrisonToni Morrison is a Nobel Prize and Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, editor, and professor. Her novels are known for their epic themes, vivid dialogue, and richly detailed characters. Among her best known novels are The Bluest Eye, Song of Solomon and Beloved...
's novel
BelovedBeloved is a novel by the American writer Toni Morrison, published in 1987. Set in 1873 just after the American Civil War , it is based on the story of the African-American slave, Margaret Garner, who escaped slavery in 1856 in Kentucky by fleeing to Ohio, a free state...
; she later dropped out of both projects due to pregnancy. Hill became dissatisfied with the music industry; she felt she was being unfairly controlled by her record label, and disliked being unable "to go to the grocery store without makeup." She fired her management team and began attending
Bible study classesIn Christianity, Bible study is the study of the Bible by ordinary people as a personal religious or spiritual practice. Some denominations may call this devotion or devotional acts; however in other denominations devotion has other meanings...
five days a week; she also stopped doing interviews, watching television and listening to music. She started associating with a "spiritual adviser" named Brother Anthony. Some familiar with Hill believe Anthony more resembled a
cult leaderThe word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
than a spiritual advisor, and thought his guidance probably inspired much of Hill's more controversial public behavior.
In 2000, she dropped out of the public eye. She described this period of her life to
EssenceEssence is a monthly magazine for African-American women between the ages of 18 and 49. The magazine covers fashion, lifestyle and beauty with an intimate girlfriend-to-girlfriend tone.-History:...
: "People need to understand that the Lauryn Hill they were exposed to in the beginning was all that was allowed in that arena at that time… I had to step away when I realized that for the sake of the machine, I was being way too compromised. I felt uncomfortable about having to smile in someone's face when I really didn't like them or even know them well enough to like them." She also spoke about her emotional crisis, saying, "For two or three years I was away from all social interaction. It was a very introspective time because I had to confront my fears and master every
demoncall - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
ic thought about inferiority, about insecurity or the fear of being black, young and gifted in this
western cultureWestern culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
." She went on to say that she had to fight to retain her identity, and was forced "to deal with folks who weren't happy about that."
On July 21, 2001, Hill unveiled her new material to a small crowd, for a taping of an
MTV UnpluggedMTV Unplugged is a TV series showcasing many popular musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show has received the George Foster Peabody Award and 3 Primetime Emmy nominations among many accolades.-Unplugged:...
special. An album of the concert, titled
MTV Unplugged No. 2.0MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 is a live album by American hip hop/soul artist Lauryn Hill. The performance comes from her 2002 MTV Unplugged special recorded on July 21, 2001 at MTV Studios in Times Square, New York City. The album has sold over one million copies in the United States and over 1.5 million...
, focused on the lyrics and the message rather than the musical arrangements. "Fantasy is what people want, but reality is what they need", she said during the concert. "I've just retired from the fantasy part." Most of the songs featured only an acoustic guitar and her voice, somewhat raspy from rehearsal on the day before the recording. Hill used the set as an opportunity to give information on why she had been absent from the public for a period of time and what she had found while away. Unlike the near-unanimous praise of The Miseducation, 2.0 sharply divided critics. AllMusic gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, saying that the recording "is the unfinished, unflinching presentation of ideas and of a person. It may not be a proper follow-up to her first album, but it is fascinating." Rolling Stone called the album "a public breakdown".
Slant MagazineSlant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
s Sal Cinquemani wrote, "Hill's guitarwork is multi-textured and fine-tuned but her vocals lack confidence and seem to toe the edge of her range throughout the album. And though the stripped-down nature of the show is fitting, many of the songs sound as if they are still in their infancy." Despite the mixed reviews, 2.0 debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and went platinum four weeks after its release. Despite Hill's departure from the media and celebrity, she continued to have some success in the music world. Her song "Mystery of Iniquity" was nominated for a Grammy without promotion or radio airplay and used as an
interpolationInterpolation in music refers to an abrupt change in musical elements from the main theme.-In classical music:In music and musical composition, especially 20th century and later, interpolation is an abrupt change of elements, with continuation of the first idea...
by hip-hop producer/song-writer
Kanye WestKanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
for his single "
All Falls Down"All Falls Down" is a song by American hip hop artist Kanye West. It was released as the second single from his debut album, The College Dropout. The song was produced by West and features singer Syleena Johnson. It was released in February 2004 and entered the UK Singles Chart at number ten and...
" (eventually recorded by
Syleena JohnsonSyleena Johnson is a Grammy award-nominated American R&B and soul singer-songwriter and actress.-Biography:...
).
Vatican controversy
On December 13, 2003, Hill made headlines by denouncing "corruption, exploitation, and abuses" in reference to the molestation of boys by Catholic priests in the United States and the cover-up of offenses by Catholic Church officials. The statements were made during a performance at a Christmas benefit concert at the
VaticanThe Apostolic Palace is the official residence of the Pope, which is located in Vatican City. It is also known as the Sacred Palace, the Papal Palace and the Palace of the Vatican...
. Reading from a prepared statement, Hill told the crowd of 7,500:
Hill called on the church leaders to "repent" and encouraged the crowd to "not seek blessings from man but from God." She then performed the songs "Damnable Heresies" and "Social Drugs". High-ranking church officials in attendance included Cardinal Camillo Ruini, Monsignor Rino Fisichella and Cardinal Edmund Szoka.
Pope John Paul IIBlessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
was not present. The segment was cut from the television broadcast. Both the Vatican and Columbia Records refused to issue official statements regarding Hill's actions. Monsignor Fisichella told reporters that Hill had acted "in poor taste and very bad mannered. It showed a complete lack of respect for her invitation and for the place where she had been invited to perform". The
Catholic LeagueThe Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, often shortened to the Catholic League, is an American Catholic anti-defamation and civil rights organization...
called Hill "pathologically miserable" and claimed her career is "in decline". Hill responded to the controversy on December 16: "What I said was the truth. Is telling the truth bad manners? What I asked was the church to repent for what has happened." The following day, several reporters suggested that Hill's comments at the Vatican may have been influenced by her "advisor" Brother Anthony.
2004–2006: Short-lived return of the Fugees
The Fugees performed on September 18, 2004 at
Dave Chappelle's Block PartyA compilation of "music from and inspired by" the film was released on March 14, 2006.The album was released by Geffen Records, and produced by Corey Smyth for Blacksmith Music Corp and Questlove.#Dead Prez - "Hip Hop"#Black Star - "Definition"...
in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of
BrooklynBrooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. They headlined a bill that included a star-studded cast of hip-hop celebrities. The concert featured Hill's nearly
a cappellaA cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
rendition of "Killing Me Softly". The event was recorded by director
Michel GondryMichel Gondry is an Academy Award winning filmmaker, whose works include being a commercial director, music video director, and a screenwriter. He is noted for his inventive visual style and manipulation of mise en scène. - Life and career :...
and was released on March 3, 2006 to mostly positive reviews. In 2005, she told an interviewer that "The Fugees was a conspiracy to control, to manipulate and to encourage dependence. I took a lot of abuse that many people would not have taken in these circumstances." The Fugees also appeared at
BETBlack Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
's 2005 Music Awards on June 28, 2005, where they opened the show with a 12-minute set. One track, "Take It Easy", was leaked online and thereafter was released as an internet single on September 27, 2005. It peaked at No. 40 on the Billboard R&B Chart. The song was mostly panned by critics, as
The Village VoiceThe Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
wrote, "Turns out that a Fugees reunion wasn't really what anyone was waiting for; we just wanted Lauryn to start rapping again."
The Fugees embarked on a European tour from November 30, 2005 through December 20, 2005. The group played in Austria, Slovakia, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Germany, Belgium, Italy, France, England, Ireland and Switzerland. On February 6, 2006, the Fugees did a special "Reunion Concert" in Hollywood, that was offered as a live webcast on the
Verizon WirelessCellco Partnership, doing business as Verizon Wireless, is one of the largest mobile network operators in the United States. The network has 107.7 million subscribers as of 2011, making it the largest wireless service provider in America....
website. The Fugees were featured in numerous Verizon Wireless VCast advertisements in magazines and on TV around that same time. A new song titled "Foxy" was made available on VCast and a third new song was leaked, unofficially titled "Wannabe", which uses the same hook as the
Michael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
song "
I Wanna Be Where You Are"I Wanna Be Where You Are" is a song written by Arthur "T-Boy" Ross and Leon Ware for Michael Jackson, who took the song to number sixteen on the U.S. pop singles chart and number two on the U.S. R&B singles chart in 1972...
". Old tensions between Hill and the other members of the group soon resurfaced, and the reunion fizzled before an album could be recorded. Jean and Michel both blamed Hill for the split. Hill reportedly demanded to be addressed by everyone, including her bandmates, as "Ms. Hill"; she also considered changing her moniker to "Empress". Her chronic tardiness – sometimes stalling up to 45 minutes after the two had taken the stage – has been cited as another contributing factor to the breakup. Michel told the press in August 2007, "Before I work with Lauryn Hill again, you will have a better chance of seeing
Osama Bin LadenOsama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
and
George W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
in
StarbucksStarbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
having a
latteA latte is a coffee drink made with espresso and steamed milk. Variants include replacing the coffee with another drink base such as masala chai, mate or matcha...
, discussing foreign policies… At this point I really think it will take an act of God to change her, because she is that far out there."
2004–2009
Hill has been slowly working on a new album and in November 2004 shot a music video. The album had a slated street date of November 2005, and neither it nor the music video have been released. It was also reported that as of 2003,
Columbia RecordsColumbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
had spent more than $2.5 million funding Hill's new album, mostly spent on installing a recording studio in the singer's Miami apartment and flying different musicians around the country. In 2004, Hill contributed a new song, "The Passion", to
The Passion of the Christ: SongsThe Passion of the Christ: Songs is an album of songs inspired by The Passion of the Christ. It was produced by Mark Joseph and Tim Cook and executive produced by Mel Gibson. It won the 2005 GMA Music Award for Special Event Album of the Year...
. Around this time, Hill began selling a
pay-per-viewPay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
music video of the song "Social Drugs" through her website. Those who purchase the $15 video would only be able to view it three times before it expired. In addition to the video, Hill began selling autographed posters and
PolaroidsInstant film is a type of photographic film first introduced by Polaroid that is designed to be used in an instant camera...
through her website, with some items listed at upwards of $500. In 2005, she told
USA TodayUSA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, "If I make music now, it will only be to provide information to my own children. If other people benefit from it, then so be it." When asked how she now felt about the songs on 2.0, she stated "a lot of the songs were transitional. The music was about how I was feeling at the time, even though I was documenting my distress as well as my bursts of joy."
She has toured several times in recent years, though most of her concerts have received mixed reviews. Hill is often late to concerts (sometimes by over two hours) and reconfigures her well-known hits in to "unrecognizable
scatIn vocal jazz, scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. Scat singing gives singers the ability to sing improvised melodies and rhythms, to create the equivalent of an instrumental solo using their voice.- Structure and syllable choice...
chants" while "sporting frizzy orange hair and exaggerated makeup". On some occasions, fans have booed her and left early; some fans have also demanded their money back after concerts. On October 6, 2005, Hill emceed and performed two songs at the Take Back TV concert launching
Al GoreAlbert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
's CurrentTV. In June 2007,
Sony, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
records said though Hill has "consistently recorded over the past decade" and has what amounts to "a library of unreleased material in the vault", she had recently re-entered the studio "with the goal of making a new LP." Later that same year, a new album entitled Ms. Hill, which featured cuts from The Miseducation, various soundtracks contributions and other "unreleased" songs, was released. It features guest appearances from D'Angelo,
Rah DiggaRah Digga is an American rapper. Well known as a long time member of the Flipmode Squad, a hip hop group led by Busta Rhymes, she parted ways amicably with the group in 2007. She has been called "one of rap's most prominent women MCs" by Allmusic and "one of hip-hop's most skilled female MCs" in...
and
John FortéJohn Forté is a Grammy-nominated American recording artist, composer, music producer, educator and activist. He achieved fame while writing, producing and performing with the celebrated hip hop group The Fugees during the 1990’s, and has released four solo albums, including his most recent effort,...
. Also in June 2007, Hill released a new song, "
Lose Myself"Lose Myself" is a 2007 song by American singer/rapper Ms. Lauryn Hill. It is included on the soundtrack to Surf's Up, released on June 5, 2007...
" on the soundtrack to the film
Surf's UpSurf's Up is a 2007 American computer-animated mockumentary family comedy film directed by Ash Brannon and Chris Buck. It stars the voices of Shia LaBeouf, Jeff Bridges, Zooey Deschanel and Jon Heder among others....
under her new professional name, Ms. Lauryn Hill. The song is also played over the credits.
Reports in mid-2008 claimed that Columbia Records currently believe Hill to be "on hiatus." Rohan Marley disputed these claims, telling an interviewer that Hill has enough material for several albums: "She writes music in the bathroom, on
toilet paperToilet paper is a soft paper product used to maintain personal hygiene after human defecation or urination. However, it can also be used for other purposes such as blowing one's nose when one has a cold or absorbing common spills around the house, although paper towels are more used for the latter...
, on the wall. She writes it in the mirror if the mirror smokes up. She writes constantly. This woman does not sleep". One of the few public appearances Hill made in 2008 was at a
Martha StewartMartha Stewart is an American business magnate, author, magazine publisher, and television personality. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she has gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, and merchandising...
book-signing in New Jersey, perplexing some in the press. On November 4, 2008, Hill was scheduled to perform at the
Avo Session BaselAVO SESSION Basel is an indoor music festival, which takes place every October/November in Basel, Switzerland. The festival features international as well as national artists of diverse music genres in an intimate club setting...
music festival in
BaselBasel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
, Switzerland. Her concert was canceled "for personal reasons". In April 2009, it was reported that Hill would engage in a 10 day tour of European summer festivals during mid-July of that year. She performed two shows for the tour and passed out on stage during the start of her second performance and left the stage. She refused to give refunds to angry consumers for the show. On June 10, Hill's management informed the promoters of the
Stockholm Jazz FestivalStockholm Jazz Festival, established in 1980, is an annual jazz festival in Stockholm, Sweden. It is a major summer event of Stockholm and it is spread over several venues across the city.-Overview:...
, which she was scheduled to headline, that she would not be performing due to unspecified "health reasons." Shortly afterward, the rest of the tour was canceled as well.
2010–present
In January 2010, Hill returned to the live stage and performed in stops across New Zealand and Australia on the 'Raggamuffin Festival'- a music festival that celebrates reggae music. She performed songs from the Miseducation album and some Fugees hits. On April 19, Hill appeared at the Tanzania Education Trust Gala And Reception in New York City for a Charity Event. When making this public appearance, she was asked by paparazzi whether she is working on a new album, to which she replied "Yeah, possibly", suggesting that she may be working on new projects, and possibly a second album. On June 8, it was announced that Hill would be the very special guest performer at
Rock the BellsRock the Bells is an annual hip hop festival that originally took place in Southern California only, but has since toured throughout the world. The concert features a lineup of high-profile alternative hip hop artists, often headlined by a more mainstream artist...
hip hop Festival series. Five days later, Hill appeared at the Harmony Festival in Santa Rosa, California, her first live American performance in several years. In a June interview with NPR reporter/producer Zoe Chace as part of NPR's 50 Great Voices Series, Hill confirmed that she was planning to begin recording again and discussed her hiatus and five children.
Ronald IsleyRonald Isley is an American singer and is known as the lead singer and founding member of the family music group The Isley Brothers.-Career:...
of the Isley Brothers confirmed he worked with Hill on an upcoming album as well. On September 8, 2010, Isley and Hill's duet, Close To You, a remake of the classic song by
Burt BacharachBurt F. Bacharach is an American pianist, composer and music producer. He is known for his popular hit songs and compositions from the mid-1950s through the 1980s, with lyrics written by Hal David. Many of their hits were produced specifically for, and performed by, Dionne Warwick...
and
Hal DavidHarold Lane "Hal" David is an American lyricist. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York. David is best known for his collaborations with composer Burt Bacharach.-Career:...
, was leaked online.
An unreleased song called "
Repercussions"Repercussions" is a song that was released by American artist Lauryn Hill on July 29, 2010, through Columbia Records. The song was released as digital download, and was confirmed to be a cut from her upcoming second studio album. It is Hill's first single to be released since 2002's "Mr...
" was leaked via the internet in late July. On August 28, 2010 the song debuted at No. 94 on
BillboardBillboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
's
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop SongsHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
(which peaked at No. 83 the following week), making it her first Billboard chart appearance as a lead artist since 1999; last song on the charts being her cover version of
Bob MarleyRobert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
's "
Turn Your Lights Down Low"Turn Your Lights Down Low" is a song by Bob Marley & The Wailers from their 1977 album Exodus.-Covers:*Colbie Caillat made a cover version of this song on her 2008 album Coco.*Lauryn Hill covered this tune on the 1999 LP Chant Down Babylon...
" which reached No. 86 on the
Billboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and No. 49 on the
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop SongsHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
. In April 2010, many of the songs that Hill had performed and recorded over the past six years were included on an unofficial
compilation albumA compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
titled Khulami Phase. The album also features a range of other material found on the Ms. Hill compilation. On August 28, Hill performed at Rock the Bells Hip Hop festival on Governor's Island in Brooklyn. Hill performed several songs from The Miseducation, including "To Zion", during which she brought her five children on stage. On November 5, 2010, Hill headlined the University of Miami's annual Homecoming concert. Hill performed several songs in front of a very large and responsive crowd. Her hour long set included songs from the Miseducation album such as "Lost Ones", "Ex-Factor", "To Zion" (during which she brought her son Joshua on stage and allowed him to sing into the microphone), a few Bob Marley songs, and several Fugees tracks. Hill was announced to headline the 6th Annual Jazz in the Gardens, in Miami Gardens, Florida in December 2010. She performed on the first day of the two day concert, March 19, 2011, along with
Jazmine SullivanJazmine Marie Sullivan is an American recording artist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is also the protégé of rapper Missy Elliott. Her debut single "Need U Bad" reached number one on Billboards Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, while her second single, "Bust Your Windows" peaked at number four...
, Charlie Wilson,
Al JarreauAlwin "Al" Lopez Jarreau is a seven-time Grammy Award winning jazz singer.- Background :Jarreau was born in Milwaukee, the fifth of six children. His web site refers to Reservoir, Inc., the name of the street where he lived. His father was a Seventh-Day Adventist Church minister and singer, and...
, and
Doug E. FreshDouglas E. Davis , better known by the stage name Doug E. Fresh, is an American rapper, record producer, and beat boxer, also known as the Human Beat Box...
with
Slick RickRichard Walters , better known by his stage name Slick Rick is a Grammy-nominated English-American rapper...
.
In spring of 2011, Lauryn Hill preformed at the Coachella Valley Music Festival to a multitudinous crowd. Hill also played at the New Orleans JazzFest, on the Congo Square Stage, Saturday, May 7 at 5:25 pm and at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on May 13 at 8:00 pm.
Personal life
Hill dated
Wyclef JeanWyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
through the majority of
The FugeesFugees were a Haitian American hip hop group who rose to fame in the mid-1990s. Their repertoire included elements of Hip hop, soul and Caribbean music, particularly reggae. The members of the group were rapper/singer/producer Wyclef Jean, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill, and rapper Pras Michel...
' early tenure, a relationship that friends have called "complicated." In the summer of 1996, Hill met
Rohan MarleyRohan Anthony Marley is the son of late reggae artist Bob Marley and Janet Hunt.A 1991 graduate of Miami Palmetto Senior High School, Marley played linebacker for the University of Miami football team, where he played alongside players like Dwayne Johnson and Ray Lewis. In 1993 he led the...
, the son of
reggaeReggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
legend
Bob MarleyRobert Nesta "Bob" Marley, OM was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and musician. He was the rhythm guitarist and lead singer for the ska, rocksteady and reggae band Bob Marley & The Wailers...
. Despite the fact that Marley was already married, Hill and Marley started a family. They have five children together: Zion David (born August 3, 1997), Selah Louise (born November 12, 1998), Joshua Omaru (born January 26, 2002), John Nesta (born mid-2003), and Sarah (born January 2008). She also has a son (born July 23, 2011) with another man.
From 1998, Hill reportedly lived in both the
CaribbeanThe Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
and an upscale hotel in Miami. However, in August 2008, it was reported that Hill was living with her mother and children in her hometown of
South Orange, New Jersey-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 16,964 people, 5,522 households, and 3,766 families residing in the township. The population density was 5,945.3 people per square mile . There were 5,671 housing units at an average density of 1,987.5 per square mile...
, although Hill's net worth is still reported to exceed $8.7 million from her record sales, tours and investments in Jamaica. Her twitter account is twitter.com/LaurynHill
Legacy and influences
Lauryn Hill has been cited as an influence by many, especially those in the neo-soul movement of the 2000s. Musicians who have acknowledged Hill's importance or influence include
PrincePrince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
,
John LegendJohn Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...
,
Alicia KeysAlicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
,
Christina AguileraChristina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...
,
D'AngeloMichael Eugene Archer , better known by his stage name D'Angelo, is an American R&B and neo soul singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He is known for his production and songwriting talents as much as for his vocal abilities, and often draws comparisons to his influences,...
,
Mary J. BligeMary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
, and
Jazmine SullivanJazmine Marie Sullivan is an American recording artist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is also the protégé of rapper Missy Elliott. Her debut single "Need U Bad" reached number one on Billboards Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, while her second single, "Bust Your Windows" peaked at number four...
, among others. In
2005-Events:*During the year 2005, 12 rock music albums scored number 1 in the USA. This was the first time even ten albums have scored number 1 since 1996.-January:...
,
Talib KweliTalib Kweli Greene , better known as Talib Kweli, is an American hip-hop artist and poet from Brooklyn, New York. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker" ; his in Swahili means "true"...
released a song about the singer, titled "Ms. Hill", on
Right About NowRight About Now: The Official Sucka Free Mix CD or simply Right About Now was released by Talib Kweli in November 2005 and is generally considered a mixtape. However, some people regard this release as an official album because of its availability through commercial sites and its release of two...
.
Michelle ObamaMichelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is the wife of the 44th and incumbent President of the United States, Barack Obama, and is the first African-American First Lady of the United States...
, wife of U.S. President
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, told the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
that she frequently listens to Hill's music on her
iPodiPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
, while 2008 Republican presidential candidate Senator
John McCainJohn Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
's daughter
MeghanMeghan Marguerite McCain is an American columnist, author, and blogger. She is a daughter of U.S. Senator John McCain and Cindy Hensley McCain. McCain first received media attention in 2007 for her blog, McCain Blogette, on which she documented life on the campaign trail and mused about...
stated that her father listens to Hill: "I borrowed his car once in D.C., and I was looking through [his] CDs, and I was like, 'Oh, Lauryn Hill.'" Actors
Russell CroweRussell Ira Crowe is a New Zealander Australian actor , film producer and musician. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius in the 2000 historical epic film Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor, a...
and
Denzel WashingtonDenzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He first rose to prominence when he joined the cast of the medical drama, St. Elsewhere, playing Dr...
are also reportedly fans of the singer. D'Angelo, who appeared on "Nothing Even Matters," referred in an interview to at least one church reportedly having used the song in a service.
British soul singer
AdeleAdele Laurie Blue Adkins , known professionally as Adele, is an English singer-songwriter. She was the first recipient of the Brit Awards Critics' Choice and was named the number-one predicted breakthrough act of 2008 in an annual BBC poll of music critics, Sound of 2008...
revealed that Hill's debut album is her favorite <3 record ever: "I remember it being huge everywhere. Even though I was pretty young and oblivious, I was very aware of how successful that record was. I was a big fan of Lauryn Hill when she was in the Fugees anyway and that was a record I grew up listening to." In addition, she spoke about the singer's songwriting skills and passion for music: "I analyzed that record for a month and was constantly wondering when I'd be that passionate about something to write a record about [...] I analyzed the notes and I was singing along to the lyrics that are some of the deepest lyrics ever".
Discography
- The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the debut solo album by American musician Lauryn Hill, released August 25, 1998, on Columbia Records. Recording sessions for the album took place from late 1997 to June 1998, and were held primarily at Tuff Gong Studios in Jamaica...
(1998)
- MTV Unplugged No. 2.0
MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 is a live album by American hip hop/soul artist Lauryn Hill. The performance comes from her 2002 MTV Unplugged special recorded on July 21, 2001 at MTV Studios in Times Square, New York City. The album has sold over one million copies in the United States and over 1.5 million...
(2002)
- TBA (2012)
Filmography
- 1991 – As the World Turns
As the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light...
.... Kira Johnson
- 1992 – Here and Now
- 1993 – King of the Hill
King of the Hill is a 1993 film, Steven Soderbergh's third feature film, and the second he directed from his own screenplay following his 1989 Palme d'Or-winning effort sex, lies, and videotape. It too was nominated for the Palme d'Or, at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival.-Production:Based on the...
.... Elevator Operator
- 1993 – Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit
Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit is a 1993 comedy film starring Whoopi Goldberg. Directed by Bill Duke, and released by Touchstone Pictures, it is the sequel to the successful 1992 film Sister Act...
.... Rita Louise Watson
- 1996 – ABC Afterschool Specials .... Malika
- 1997 – Hav Plenty
Hav Plenty is a 1997 American independent film released by Miramax Films, based on an eventful weekend in the life of Lee Plenty , written and directed by Cherot...
.... Debra
- 1998 – Restaurant
Restaurant is a 1998 independent film starring Adrien Brody, Elise Neal, David Moscow and Simon Baker. Written by Tom Cudworth and directed by Eric Bross, Restaurant was the follow-up to this writing–directing duo's first film, TenBenny, which also starred Adrien Brody...
.... Leslie
External links