THE INTRODUCTION OF LAURYN HILL
When I was 10 Sister Act 2 was my favourite film and every Friday, for 2 months without fail, I would make my dad rent it out for me. Although it starred the brilliant Whoopi Goldberg and a cast of kids who I desperately wished I was in school with, it was basically rented out so that I could fast-forward it to my favourite songs and to all the parts featuring Rita Watson.
She was a teenage girl with a wicked death stare, who in the beginning of the movie doesn’t take too well to Whoopi Goldberg’s inspirational teacher schtick. Rita was the breakout film role for a then unknown Lauryn Hill that introduced her as a film actress, but more importantly as a singer. With Sister Act 2, she obviously got to score the big song at the film’s finale, but it’s the scene when she is interrupted singing ‘His Eye Is On The Sparrow’ by a nosey nun that I reckon I and countless others fell in love with her.
Even then, when she was just a year shy of joining The Fugees, her voice already displayed her trademark rasp and the soulful vulnerability that audiences became familiar with in her work with the group and on her debut solo album. Her time with Fugees band mates Pras and Wyclef only made her star shine brighter. Their sophomore album The Score saw Lauryn dominate on tracks like ‘Killing Me Softly’ as well as making the choruses on ‘Ready Or Not’ and ‘Fu-Gee-La’ completely unforgettable.
However, it was clear that the fans craved something from just Lauryn, she released the single ‘The Sweetest Thing’ for the movie Love Jones and people lost their minds. The track was incredible and was the perfect introduction for her debut album ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’. The 5 Grammy award winning ‘Miseducation’ was exactly what fans had been waiting for. It detailed her complicated relationship with band mate Wyclef (Ex-Factor /Lost Ones), her new found joy at being mother (Zion) and her wisdom (Everything is Everything).
More importantly she helped re-evaluate the perception of the black female artist. She could sing as gently as Roberta Flack but go hard on the mic as well as, if not better than any guy MC, something that her peers like Lil Kim could not completely claim. With no agenda, she became the poster girl for the neo-soul generation, with many women copying her trademark dreads and lipstick line. For a young black girl growing up in suburbia as I did, it was inspiring to see a woman considered beautiful, talented and a style icon that was dark skinned and had unrelaxed hair.
It has now been 11 years since ‘The Miseducation’s’ release and Lauryn has teased us with a polarizing unplugged album, been publicly called out to come back on Talib Kweli’s ‘Ms Hill’ and has had her sanity questioned several times by the public as well as her old band mates. Her musical influence on artists is still evident with many critics quick to hail Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black as ‘the Sophomore Album Lauryn never made’.
The question of whether she will ever produce a decent follow up to ‘The Miseducation…’ is getting as tedious as the promised release date for Dre’s ‘Detox’ record, but if those introductory 20 secondss from Sister Act 2 and one proper studio album is all we’ll ever get from her, then Ms Hill, we thank you.
CEE A
MORE LIKE THIS
Music
Kiss FM was pretty much the premier urban music station ...
Music
Soul Jazz records have carefully put together some of the ...
Music
Trust me, I ain't one of those crying-into-my-pillow, woe-is-me,get-the-mini-violin-out-because-my-boyfriend-dumped me, ...
COMMENTS
Wed 8 Sep 2010 at 07:59 am
march
march
Nike air max ,nike air max 90,nike air max
shoes, nike air
max 90, nike
air max 180, MBT Shoes,Anti Shoes , cheap
mbt , Womens MBT Shoes , mens MBT Shoes ,coach bags , coach outlet ,coach outlet store online, Coach jewelry , coach wallets,coach handbags,chanel bags,chanel cambon. chanel
handbags, chanel
handbags 2010 , chanel
jewelry,chanel 2.55
bags, louis vuitton bags , Louis vuittonlouis
vuitton outlet, Louis vuitton
handbags,louis
vuitton wallet, LV, coach outletcoach outlet store online , coach handbags,coach wallets, coach handbags outlet,Coach
outlet, coach bags, coach
outlet store online, coach handbags
Sat 28 Aug 2010 at 08:25 am
xiaopohai
xiaopohai
Your article is write very well, I like it very much ~<br>
If you have any needs, they can provide the following for your reference:
I wish you have a wonderful day!Thank you.
Your article is write very well, I like it very much ~<br>
Your article is write very well, I like it very much ~<br>
If you have any needs, they can provide the following for your reference:
I wish you have a wonderful day!Thank you.
Your article is write very well, I like it very much ~<br>
xiao101
Sat 28 Aug 2010 at 08:23 am
jiemo
jiemo
Your article is write very well, I like it very much ~<br>
If you have any needs, they can provide the following for your reference:
I wish you have a wonderful day!Thank you.
Sat 14 Aug 2010 at 10:21 pm
كام
كام
Wed 25 Mar 2009 at 07:48 pm
Rory Gleeson
Rory Gleeson
la la la la la la la la la
lala lala lahhhhhh
lala lala lahhhhhh
Add Comment
