Lauryn Hill and the racist rumor: NOT TRUE!

During the summer of 1996, a caller to shock jock Howard Stern’s radio show said on the air that he’d heard Lauryn tell MTV that she’d rather see her child starve than have a white kid buy her album. MTV would announce later that the allegation wasn’t true, but by that time it was too late. The ugly, false rumor had already been set in motion.

“From this one broadcast, all of a sudden people who appreciated my music thought that there was something wrong with who I was and what I represented,” says Lauryn. Instead of letting a publicist act on her behalf, Lauryn, furious and very hurt, called a radio station herself to deny the charge. “I said, ‘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 segregation.‘”

“Let me clarify this right now,” Lauryn responds forcefully. “I am not a racist. I love people who love God. I love good people. If you’re a good person with a good heart, you’re cool with me. And I hope I’m cool with you. There’s nothing racist about anything in my heart.“

Lauryn insists she wants people to understand that her goal to improve the self-love of young African-American women should never be confused with advocating racial supremacy. 
“There are a lot of young black girls who I meet in my travels who don’t have a lot of self-esteem,” she explains. “So if I communicate to them that they’re beautiful, no white person should find fault in that. It doesn’t mean that young white girls aren’t beautiful, because they are just as beautiful.”

source: excerpts from ‘Teen People’ magazine (issue 04/99)

RELATED LINKS

Watch: Lauryn Hill on Howard Stern Radio Show 1996

Lauryn Hill Speaks: Exclusive Interview

Fresh off the stage after a performance in Belgium on July, 27th 2007, Lauryn Hill sits down for an exclusive interview.

Wyclef returns with Carnival II

Wyclef Jean returns to Columbia Records with “The Carnival II: Memoirs of an Immigrant,” the artist’s first full-length album for the label since his third solo album, “Masquerade,” entered the Billboard Top 200 at #6 in June 2002. “The Carnival II: Memoirs of an Immigrant” is slated for release this autumn.With “The Carnival II: Memoirs of an Immigrant,” his sixth full-length studio album, Wyclef Jean continues the autobiographical musical odyssey he began a decade ago with his 1997 triple-platinum debut solo album, “Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival Featuring Refugee All-Stars” (aka “The Carnival”). 

Wyclef gave his fans their first taste of “The Carnival II” with the release of the album’s lead-in single, “Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill),” featuring Akon, Lil’ Wayne and introducing Niia. Released in August, the single rapidly made its first Billboard chart appearance entering the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart at #3. “Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill)” is now available digitally. According to Wyclef, “The Carnival II” is “a continuation of ‘Gone Till November” (his 1997 Top 10 signature hit from “The Carnival”). I focus a lot on the songwriting.” 

For his much anticipated new album, Wyclef has once again called upon his friends, showcasing his musical dexterity as he draws from an extraordinary and diverse roster of collaborating guest artists including Paul Simon (on “Fast Car”), Mary J. Blige, T.I., Norah Jones, Akon, Serj Tankian (of System Of A Down) (on “Trouble Again”), Lil’ Wayne, and Shakira, to name a few. Wyclef produced the entire album with his long-time production partner, Jerry “Wonda” Duplessis, with whom he has worked since the beginning of the Fugees. 

source: wyclef.com official press release

RELATED LINKS

Video: Sweetest Girl (feat. Akon, Lil'Wayne and Niia)

Video: Sweetest Girl Remix (feat. Akon, Lil'Wayne, Reakwon, Niia)

Lauryn Hill Festival Tour Dates Summer 2007

After concerts in Hawaii and Japan, Lauryn Hill returns to Europe this summer to do several festivals. See below for all tour dates:
BRASIL

June, 09th 2007
Festival de Alegre in Espirito Santo

June, 12th 2007
PEPSI On Stage Festival in Porto Alegre

June, 14th and 15th 2007
São Paulo (SP), no Tom Brasil Nações Unidas

June, 16th 2007
Rio de Janeiro (RJ), no Vivo Rio

USA

June, 27th 2007
Lauryn Hill Concert, Paramount Theater - Oakland, CA
June, 29th 2007
Lauryn Hill Concert, Palomar Starlight Theater - Casino in Pala, CA

June, 30th 2007
An Evening With Lauryn Hill, Red Rock Casino in Las Vegas

ITALY

July, 04th 2007
Lauryn Hill @ the presentation of FIAT 500 in Torino, Italy

DUBAI

July, 05th 2007
Life Music Festival at Madinat Arena, Madinat Jumeirah, DUBAI

FRANCE

July, 06th 2007
Festival Solidays 2007 in Paris

UK

July, 08th 2007
London Hammersmith Carling Apollo

July, 09th 2007
Birmingham Carling Academy

July, 10th 2007
Manchester Carling Apollo

SWITZERLAND

July, 12th 2007
Sunset Festival 2007 in Zurich

SERBIA

July, 14th 2007
EXIT Festival 2007 in Novi Sad (Serbia)

TURKEY

July, 15th 2007
Lauryn Hill at Masstival 2007 in Istanbul (Turkey)

FINLAND

July, 17th 2007
Lauryn Hill at Hartwall Areena in Helsinki (Finland)

DENMARK

July, 18th 2007
Lauryn Hill concert at VEGA in COPENHAGEN, Denmark

NORWAY

July, 20th - 21st 2007
VIKA FESTIVAL, Norway

July, 21st 2007
Canal Street 2007 - Arendal Jazz & Blues Festival

ITALY

July, 24th 2007
Lauryn Hill at Lucca Jazz Festival 2007 in LUCCA

FRANCE

July, 25th 2007
Lauryn Hill at Nice Jazz Festival 2007

NETHERLANDS

July, 26th 2007
Lauryn Hill with Band at Heineken Music Hall, Amsterdam

BELGIUM

July, 27th 2007
Suikkerock 2007 Festival in Tiennen, Belgium

CZECH REPUBLIC

July, 28th 2007
Music in the Park Festival 2007 in Praha (Prague), Chez Republic

USA

August, 06th 2007
FREE CONCERT! Martin Luther King Concert Series
An Evening with Lauryn Hill and Special Guests

Fugees Reunion “straight dead”

There were faint signs of hope. There were reasons to believe. There was even a decent comeback single released in late 2005 called “Take It Easy,” in which Lauryn Hill passionately and repeatedly proclaimed “we need reconciliation!” Now, there’s nothing but destroyed dreams and disappointed, disillusioned fans.

“Straight dead” is how Prazrakel “Praz” Michel described the status of the highly anticipated Fugees reunion album.

“You know, unfortunately, Miss Hill, she’s got some things she needs to deal with. I wish her the best, but life goes on,” Michel told SOHH.com.

In the meantime, Michel and lead Fugees vocalist Wyclef Jean continue to work on solo material and movies (”I gotta shoot a movie with my man Josh Lucas and Tim Roth after I finish my album,” Michel revealed), and Hill continues to make millions of anxious fans wait for her artistic insanity to end.

source: dose.ca | sohh.com

RELATED LINKS
Video: Watch the interview with Pras
Video: Fugees reuniting at 2005 BET Awards part 1 | part 2
Audio: Fugees latest (and last?) song: “Wanna Be” (2006)
Video: Fugees reuniting at Dave Chappelle’s Block Party in 2004

“Lose Myself” - brand new song by Lauryn Hill

There is a brand new Lauryn Hill song coming our way! The song is entitled “Lose Myself” and will be included on the official soundtrack for “Surf’s Up” - an animated motion picture. Movie and soundtrack will be released in June 2007.

“We are thrilled to be a part of the return of Ms. Lauryn Hill!,” exclaimed Liza Richardson, an avid surfer, DJ and music supervisor for “Surf’s Up.” “Apparently, she related to Big Z’s story — reaching the top, checking out for a while, doing some soul searching and re-emerging with joy — and wrote and recorded a real celebratory summer jam session for ‘Surf’s Up.’ We’re glad to have Lauryn back where she belongs!”

"Lose Myself" by Lauryn Hill

RELATED LINKS
Audio: Listen to “Lose Myself”
Message Board: New Lauryn Hill Song: Lose Myself - June 05th
Lyrics: “I had to lose myself, so I can love you better…”

Lauryn Hill at Bob Marley Festival 2002

I just came across this wonderful performance of Lauryn Hill singing an early version of “Social Drugs”. This was recorded in February 2002 at the “Annual Bob Marley Festival” in Miami. Enjoy! Thanks to Dazonne and the one who uploaded this video!
PLEASE NOTE: tune in at around 4:00 min to watch “Social Drugs”

“Music” by Joss Stone & Lauryn Hill

This is your chance to listen to Joss Stone’s song “Music” which features a rap part by Lauryn Hill! The song is included on Stone’s new record “Introducing Joss Stone” - in stores NOW!

“Music” is based on a Fugees track off “The Score” - supposedly “The Mask”.

Preview the song

“Colors of sounds, scales of beauty, audio scenery,
electric love, and rhythmic synergy, written to memory,
beautifully crafted scenery,
complex or simplicity, sonic energy,
piercing in sensitivity, sympathetic poetry, for some even identity, collective entity,
something to belong to, a source of energy,
the possibilities, wavelengths, and bandwidths,
higher vibration, energizing entire lands with,
something to stand with, or stand for,
lovers to walk hand in hand with and plan for,
in sanctuary, chords, harmonies, melodies, even riffs can be,
disguise human essence in sonically bottled ecstasy,
melancholy, agony breeds angst,
exercising anxieties, fueling entire societies,
making economies, stimulating, generating,
inspiration synonomously,
entertaining, expression, intangible,
invisible but undeniable,
plays the language of excitement on survival,
some call it tribal, but perfected is everything,
connected to everything, some say collectively, everything”

verse by Lauryn Hill

RELATED LINKS
Message Board - Lauryn Hill
Official Website - Joss Stone