LETTY: While singing and rapping is popular today, Lauryn Hill's debut 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill'
cemented her as the first superstar to excel in both.
20 years ago, Hill was already known for her film work.
LAURYN: From Cleveland to Africa people are just like “Sing that song”
I'm like “What song "Killing Me Softly?” they're like “No Sister Act 2!”
LETTY: And for being part of the Grammy award winning group, The Fugees.
However, it was time for her to go solo.
LAURYN: To be honest with you, the 'Miseducation' the entire album started out as me producing and writing
music for other acts.
LAURYN: I had all these songs that I planned to give away to other people until I realized
wow this is about me and this is real personal.
LETTY: Lauryn’s solo debut came during rap’s first undeniable pop culture peak.
As author Joan Morgan explains, quote:
LETTY: In ‘96, Lauryn and her Fugees bandmates,
Wyclef Jean and Pras Michel dropped their critically acclaimed and commercially successful album,
‘The Score,’ including the hip-hop-influenced remake of Roberta Flack's "Killing Me Softly."
LETTY: By 1997, Lauryn was expecting a child with her boyfriend, Bob Marley’s son, Rohan.
She had also quit The Fugee’s, saying later the group was, quote:
LETTY: She’d also ended her toxic relationship with Wyclef, who wrote in his autobiography quote:
LAURYN: I had some very strong ideas. And I was very strong about those, I felt strongly about those ideas.
LETTY: Lauryn and her New Ark production team, created most of ‘Miseducation’ at Tuff Gong studios
in Kingston, Jamaica.
New Ark's Rasheem “Kilo” Pugh, Vada Nobles, and twin brothers Johari and Tejumold Newton,
eventually sued and settled with Hill out of court over missing credit for their
writing and production work on 'Miseducation.' According to Rohan, quote:
LETTY: And the album’s title and skits were influenced by Carter G. Woodson’s
'The Miseducation of the Negro' and the film 'The Education of Sonny Carson.'
LAURYN: The meaning behind it was really sort of a catch.
And me learning that you know when i thought I was my most wise, really not wise at all.
LETTY: On “To Zion,” Ms. Hill bucked the assumption that women can’t have kids and
a successful career.
LETTY: On the cautionary “Doo-Wop (That Thing)” Lauryn blended her raps and Motown-inspired
melody to warn against opportunistic relationships.
And lyrically, “Lost Ones” is as poignant a battle record as any,
plus it went up in the club.
Lauryn’s range not only allowed her to rap with the best in hip-hop but also sing alongside
the greatest in R&B with tracks like “Nothing Even Matters” featuring D’Angelo.
And “I Used To Love Him” with the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, Mary J. Blige.
I had something to say and I wanted to make sure that it reached the people
and I didn’t want it to go over the heads of people.
And at that point you know R&B music wasn’t really used to make any statements it was hip hop.
LETTY: Though plenty of artists had tried their hand at both singing and rapping,
Lauryn was the first solo superstar to truly master both.
LAURYN: You can still be musical and still be very much hip-hop I had to make sure
that the beat was still banging I’m always tryna fuse the groove and the movement.
I want to get the thugs as well as the 50 year old women.
LETTY: In a 2012 interview with The Jewish Chronicle, Drake said, quote:
LETTY: Wrong.
Lauryn’s singles “That Thing,” “Ex-Factor” and “Everything is Everything,"
climbed up Billboard’s Hot 100 and built momentum for the album’s release.
And on August 25, 1998 ‘The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill’
entered Billboard’s Hot 200 albums chart at No. 1.
LETTY: At the 41st Annual Grammy Awards, Ms. Hill took home 5 Grammys including Album Of The Year,
making her the first hip-hop artist ever to win that category.
LAURYN: For some reason the industry has a tendency to think that there’s always some male puppet master,
some puppeteer pulling the string.
LETTY: Lauryn’s solo success fought off the idea that she couldn’t hold her own.
LAURYN: The interviewer would be like “Now Wyclef, tell us about your thoughts on the world."
Pras what do you think of hip-hop as an industry?
Lauryn, what is your favorite color of lipstick?” I'd be like D'ooh!
LETTY: In the late 90s, popular MCs lyrics often included sexually frank rhymes and looks—
but Lauryn’s songs and vibe was different.
LETTY: As Morgan puts it:
LAURYN: We understood that it was gonna be landmark,
but I don’t think I understood to what degree other people would be deeply impacted by what was done.
LETTY: Although 'The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill' dropped 20 years ago, her impact remains influential.
LETTY: If you want to learn more about Ms. Hill’s lyrics on ‘The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill,'
check out the album page on Genius.com.
I’m Letty for Genius News bringing you the meaning and the knowledge behind the music.