Lauryn Hill

Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as one of the most influential musicians of her generation. Hill is credited for breaking barriers for women rappers, popularizing melodic rap, redefining hip hop, and helping neo soul reach mainstream popularity. In addition to being named one of the 50 Great Voices by NPR, Hill has been listed as one of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time by *Rolling Stone*. In 2015, she was ranked as the greatest woman rapper by *Billboard*. Her accolades include eight Grammy Awards, the most for a female rapper to this day.

Hill began her career as a teen actress. She landed a role in the soap opera *As the World Turns* (1991), and starred in the off-Broadway play *Club XII* alongside MC Lyte. Her performance as Rita in the film *Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit* (1993), received acclaim. Hill would garner global prominence as the frontwoman of The Fugees. The success of their second album *The Score* (1996), led her to become the first woman to win the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. *The Score* included the hits "Killing Me Softly" and "Ready or Not". She was later featured on "If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)" by Nas. In 1997, The Fugees split. Afterwards, she joined Aretha Franklin on "A Rose Is Still a Rose".

Her sole studio album *The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill* arrived in 1998, featuring the hits "Ex-Factor" and "Lost Ones". The album launched atop the U.S. *Billboard* 200 with record first-week sales. It was eventually certified Diamond by Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and remains one of the best-selling albums of all time worldwide. The lead single "Doo Wop (That Thing)" debuted at No. 1 on the *Billboard* Hot 100, and was named one of the "Songs of the Century". Hill became the first rapper to grace the cover of *Time* magazine. At the 41st Grammy Awards, she set the record for the most nominations in one night for a woman, and became the first rapper to win Album of the Year. She was also honored by NAACP with their President's Award, for her humanitarian work.

Hill then released the Bob Marley duet "Turn Your Lights Down Low"; worked with Mary J. Blige on "All That I Can Say"; and collaborated with Santana. Her new-material live album *MTV Unplugged No. 2.0* (2002), reached the top five on the *Billboard 200* chart, and was certified Platinum by RIAA. Ultimately, Hill dropped out of the public eye, only periodically releasing singles. In 2014, *The Miseducation* became the first recording by a woman rapper to be selected for the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress.

### Early Life

Lauryn Noelle Hill was born on May 26, 1975, in East Orange, New Jersey. Her mother, Valerie Hill, was an English teacher and her father, Mal Hill, a computer and management consultant. She has one older brother named Malaney who was born in 1972. Her Baptist family moved to New York for a short period before settling in South Orange.

Hill has said of her musically oriented family: "there were so many records, so much music constantly being played. My mother played the piano, my father sang, and we were always surrounded by music." Her father sang in local nightclubs and at weddings. While growing up, Hill frequently listened to Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, and Gladys Knight; years later she recalled playing Marvin Gaye's *What's Going On* repeatedly until she fell asleep to it.

In middle school, Hill performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" before a basketball game. Due to its popularity, subsequent games featured a recording of her rendition. In 1988, Hill appeared as an Amateur Night contestant on *It's Showtime at the Apollo*. She sang her version of the Smokey Robinson track "Who's Lovin' You", garnering an initially harsh reaction from the crowd. She persevered through the performance.

Hill attended Columbia High School, where she was a member of the track team, cheerleading squad and was a classmate of actor Zach Braff. She also took violin lessons, went to dance class, and founded the school's gospel choir. Academically, she took advanced placement classes and received primarily 'A' grades. School officials recognized her as a leader among the student body. Later recalling her education, Hill commented, "I had a love for—I don't know if it was necessarily for academics, more than it just was for achieving, period. If it was academics, if it was sports, if it was music, if it was dance, whatever it was, I was always driven to do a lot in whatever field or whatever area I was focusing on at the moment.