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Lauryn Noel Hill (born May 25, 1975) is an eight-time Grammy award winning musician, and record producer. She initially established her reputation as the most visible and vocal member of The Fugees.
Lauryn Hill was born on May 25, 1975 in South Orange, New Jersey. She attended Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey. She was an active vocal student, cheerleader, and performer. Lauryn Hill began her acting career very early. In 1988, 13-year old Hill appeared as an Amateur Night contestant on It's Showtime at the Apollo. Hill sung her own version of Michael Jackson's song Who's Loving You?. A nervous young Hill sung far away from the mic, and the audience booed; but Hill persisted and finished her song to applause; however she did not win.
Hill joined the cast of soap opera As The World Turns as Kira Johnson. In December 1993, Hill starred with Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act 2. In Sister Act 2, Hill became widely recognized as both a capable actress and an extremely talented musician. Hill's gifted voice was demonstrated in her renditions of "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" (a duet withTanya Blount) and "Joyful, Joyful" .
Her other acting work includes the play Club XII with MC Lyte; and the motion pictures King of the Hill (as Arletta the Elevator Operator); Hav Plenty (1997); and Restaurant (1998). She appeared as a singer on the soundtracks for Conspiracy Theory in 1997 (on the track "Can't Take My Eyes Off You") and Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood in 2002 (on the track "Selah", a song dedicated to her second child, daughter Selah)
The Refugee Camp ("Fugees"), formed after Prakazrel "Pras" Michel approached Hill in high school about joining a music group he was creating. Soon after, she met Pras' close friend and fellow Haïtian immigrant, Wyclef Jean. At some point, Lauryn Hill was given the alias "L Boogie," as she began to convert her poetic writing into impressive rap verses. Though the Fugees had formed in 1988, Hill's membership was somewhat disrupted by her acting and her education at Columbia University.
Hill's singing gained worldwide acclaim with the Fugees' remake of "Killing Me Softly with His Song", accompanied by a sample from A Tribe Called Quest's "Bonita Applebum". Since her emergence, Lauryn Hill has made her presence known as one of the few artists in the industry who can both sing and rap skillfully, and being dominant & respected in both styles.
Marriage and children Since 1996 Hill has been in a relationship with former University of Miami football linebacker Rohan Marley (son of the late reggae music icon Bob Marley). Though she refers to Marley as her husband, it has not been confirmed publicly that they are legally married. According to a October 2003 Rolling Stone article by Touré, Marley never divorced his first wife, whom he married while a sophomore at the University of Miami. However, in the summer of 2005, Trace magazine interviewed Lauryn Hill and Rohan Marley; Marley said none of this was true and that many lies had been written about them.
Together they have four children: son Zion David Hill-Marley (3 August 1997); daughter Selah Louise Marley (12 November 1998); son Joshua Omaru Marley (January 2002), and son John Marley (summer 2003).
She has written songs about her two eldest children Zion and Selah. "To Zion" featured on her first solo effort, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill in 1998. "Selah" featured on the Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood soundtrack in 2002.
Musical career Blunted On Reality (1994) The Fugees' first album, Blunted on Reality, which featured the songs "Boof Baf", "Nappy Heads" and "Vocab", was much-hyped but fell short of expectations. "Nappy Heads" peaked at #49 on the U.S Hot 100. The album sold over 2 million copies worldwide. The Score (1996)
Blunted on Reality was followed by The Score, a multi-platinum, Grammy-winning album that established all three Fugees as international rap stars. Singles from The Score include "Ready or Not", "Fu-Gee-La", and "No Woman, No Cry". The album's most well-known song, however, is a cover of Roberta Flack's "Killing Me Softly", which put the group in hip-hop and pop history. A versatile, urban flavor was also added to covers of Bob Marley and the Delfonics, to create songs that most consider to be hip-hop classics.
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998) In 1998, Hill released The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, a commercially successful album that was also one of the more critically acclaimed releases of the 1990s. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill sold over 423,000 copies in its first week and topped the Billboard R&B Album chart for 6 weeks. The first single off the album was "Lost Ones" followed by "Doo Wop (That Thing)", which debuted at number one in the United States in the summer of 1998, along with singles "Ex-factor" and "Everything Is Everything". In 1999's Grammy Awards, Hill was nominated ten times and won Album of the Year (beating Madonna's critically acclaimed album Ray of Light), Best New Artist, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song, Best R&B Album, setting a new record for women in the industry.
Soon after the album became a global success, Hill and her recording company were sued by Vada Nobles, Rasheem Pugh, Johari Newton and Tejumold Newton, known as New Ark Entertainment, who claimed to have been denied full credit and compensation for their assistance on the album. Initially, Hill fought back and denied what they claimed was creative input. But the matter was settled, and they received an undisclosed amount of money (reported to be $5 million dollars) and were given credit for drum programming and a small amount of lyrical, instrumental and production work.
In July 2001, Lauryn Hill unveiled her highly-anticipated new material on an MTV Unplugged special. Fans had waited three years for Hill's follow-up to the critical and commercial smash hit, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Those fans who were selected as audience members for the MTV filming had high expectations for the former Fugees front woman. What they got was a display by an almost unrecognizable Hill, who had recently cut off her hair and wore plain clothing. The 2002 MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 album exhibited a different side of Hill, as she focused more on the lyrics and the message she was spreading 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 found while away. While some critics praised Hill's passion, brilliance, and honesty, others called the album's songs "unlistenable". Most considered the album either "tragic" or "inspiring". Nonetheless, the album received platinum status.
Despite Hill's intentional departure from the media and celebrity, Hill continued to create commercially and critically successful music. Her song "Mystery of Iniquity" was nominated for a Grammy without promotion or radio airplay and used as an interpolation by hip-hop mega-producer Kanye West for his single "All Falls Down" (eventually recorded by Syleena Johnson). John Legend, who played piano on Everything is Everything, collaborated with Hill on the Grammy-nominated remix of "So High". Talib Kweli (solo emcee and a member of the groups Black Star and Reflection Eternal) dedicated a song entitled "Ms. Hill" to her, rapping reverently that you give us hope, you give us faith, you're the one . Artists and former collaborators such as Common still include Ms. Hill in their album thank yous and dedications. In the months and years after the release of her debut album, Hill became increasingly disaffected with the music industry. In the February 2006 issue of Essence magazine, Hill describes this time in her life:
In July 2001, Lauryn Hill unveiled her highly-anticipated new material on an MTV Unplugged special. Fans had waited three years for Hill's follow-up to the critical and commercial smash hit, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Those fans who were selected as audience members for the MTV filming had high expectations for the former Fugees front woman. What they got was a display by an almost unrecognizable Hill, who had recently cut off her hair and wore plain clothing. The 2002 MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 album exhibited a different side of Hill, as she focused more on the lyrics and the message she was spreading 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 found while away. While some critics praised Hill's passion, brilliance, and honesty, others called the album's songs "unlistenable". Most considered the album either "tragic" or "inspiring". Nonetheless, the album received platinum status.
Despite Hill's intentional departure from the media and celebrity, Hill continued to create commercially and critically successful music. Her song "Mystery of Iniquity" was nominated for a Grammy without promotion or radio airplay and used as an interpolation by hip-hop mega-producer Kanye West for his single "All Falls Down" (eventually recorded by Syleena Johnson). John Legend, who played piano on Everything is Everything, collaborated with Hill on the Grammy-nominated remix of "So High". Talib Kweli (solo emcee and a member of the groups Black Star and Reflection Eternal) dedicated a song entitled "Ms. Hill" to her, rapping reverently that you give us hope, you give us faith, you're the one . Artists and former collaborators such as Common still include Ms. Hill in their album thank yous and dedications. In the months and years after the release of her debut album, Hill became increasingly disaffected with the music industry. In the February 2006 issue of Essence magazine, Hill describes this time in her life:
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 demonic thought about inferiority, about insecurity or the fear of being Black, young and gifted in this western culture. It took a considerable amount of courage, faith and risk to gain the confidence to be myself. I had to deal with folks who weren't happy about that. I was a young woman with an evolved mind who was not afraid of her beauty or her sexuality. For some people that's uncomfortable. They didn't understand how female and strong work together. Or young and wise. Or Black and divine. During this time, Hill abandoned celebrity and stopped doing interviews. She stopped watching television and listening to music and explored alternate methods of expressing herself, including creating and writing a considerable amount of music, poetry, screenplays, clothing designs, etc. In one of the most momentous reunions in hip-hop history, The Fugees performed on September 18,2004 at Dave Chappelle's Block Party in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. They headlined a bill that included a star-studded cast of hip hop celebrities. The concert received many positive reviews, most of which praised Hill's breath-taking, nearly a cappella rendition of "Killing Me Softly". The block party was recorded and directed by Michel Gondry and released on March 3,2006 to movie theaters.
The Fugees also appeared at BET's 2005 Music Awards on June 28, 2005 where they opened the show with a twelve minute set.
On October 6, 2005, Lauryn Hill emceed and performed two songs at the Take Back TV concert/ launch of Al Gore's CurrentTV.
A new album is in the works. One track, "Take It Easy", was leaked online and therefore was released as a single on the Internet on September 27, 2005. It peaked at #40 on the Billboard R&B Chart. However, the track was also met with a muted antipathy, and prompted The Village Voice to say, "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 Austria, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Germany, Belgium, Italy, France, England, Ireland and Switzerland. The tour received excellent fan reviews. Also, the tour proved the Fugees could function again as a unit.
On February 6,2006, the Fugees did a special "Reunion Concert" in Hollywood, California, that was offered as a live webcast on the Verizon Wireless website. The Fugees have been featured in numerous Verizon Wireless VCast advertisements in magazines and TV commercials. A new song titled "Foxy" was made available on VCast. Also recently, a third new song has been leaked, unofficially titled "Wannabe", which uses the same hook as the Michael Jackson song "I Wanna Be Where You Are". However, in recent interviews Pras has dismissed the leaked songs, stating that they were throwaways that the band recorded while in search of a new vibe. Solo Tour 2007
Hill has announced a tour for the summer of this year which features shows in 8 countries including the UK and US
Hill is noted as a humanitarian, and in 1996 she received an Essence Award for work which has included the 1996 founding of the Refugee Project, an outreach organization that supports a two-week overnight camp for at-risk youth, and for supporting well-building projects in Kenya and Uganda, as well as for staging a rap concert in Harlem to promote voter registration. In 1999 Hill received three awards at the 30th Annual NAACP Image Awards. In 1999 Ebony magazine named her one of "100+ Most Influential Black Americans". She was named with Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. and others among the "10 For Tomorrow," in the EBONY 2000: Special Millennium Issue.
On December 13, 2003, Hill shocked officials at a Christmas benefit concert at the Vatican by denouncing "corruption, exploitation, and abuses", in reference to the child molestation of boys by Catholic officials in the United States of America and the cover-up of offenses by Catholic Church officials. Hill told the crowd of 7,000:
