With their first album, "Blunted On Reality," the group experienced some success, but didn't quite made as many waves as they would have liked. That album included the hits "Nappy Heads," "Refugees On The Mic" and "How Hard Is It?"
It wasn't until the second album in 1996 called "The Score" that the Fugees made major radio waves starting with their number one singles "Ready Or Not," "Fu-Gee-La," "No Woman No Cry" (a Bob Marley classic) and their version of the Roberta Flack song "Killing Me Softly with His Song." "The Score" sold 5 million copies.
After the Fugees crew played on the Smokin' Grooves tour in 1997, they took time out while Lauryn gave birth to a child. What many didn't know was that during their stint together as a group, Lauryn and Wyclef were having an affair -- despite the fact that Clef was married.
In '98 Lauryn came back strong on a solo album called "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill." It was the blockbuster of the year. Her debut solo album sold 8 million copies, won five Grammys and became one of the most heavily praised albums of the decade.
It is now the year 2002. Many things have changed in the Refugee camp. In 1998 Pras put out his own album "Ghetto Supastar", which didn't make much of a splash in the record pool. Wyclef put out an album "Wyclef Jean & the Refugee All-Stars" and in 2000 Clef released his second solo album, "The Ecleftic: 2 sides II a Book."
After "Miseducation..." Lauryn seemed to just drop out of sight. There were even rumors that she was having a nervous breakdown due to intense personal problems with her marriage to Bob Marley's son Rohan.
After this long break, Lauryn is ready to release a second cd. In 2001 she did an MTV "Unplugged" special, which gave most people their first peek at her new image and frame of mind. Her performance on the show, is not only powerful but also personal because it shows a musician openly grappling with deeply personal issues.
I saw that show and Lauryn openly wept through whole songs, she seemed far away on many verses and she totally showed a whole new Lauryn that lots of fans never knew. Gone was that once I've-got-to-be-every-woman-superwoman persona who was able to effortlessly juggle work, romance and motherhood. Lauryn even explained that she was very hesitant about having children and she even renounced her tribute to her son, "To Zion," which she performed at the 1999 Grammys.
She said, "How dare I make merchandise out of my children [when] I didn't want them to be here?"
She also says that her former persona was swarming with contradictions and hypocrisy. She mentioned how she openly chastised scantily clad young women while appearing on magazine covers in teeny-weeny booty shorts. She was spewing out all types of Christian rhetoric with unbending assurance, but had already had two children out of wedlock and had lied about then admitted to an extended affair with a married man (Wyclef Jean).
It was after finding out that life is more than what you say, it's what you do, how you do it and who you do it to, Lauryn is now practicing what she preaches. She no longer dresses in skimpy outfits and has long since married the father of her children (of which she now has 3). And even though her marriage hasn't been the perfect one, she is standing by her man the best she can.
On her "Unplugged" cd, the new songs are inspirational. One of the love songs starts out with, "I gotta find peace of mind." During this song, Lauryn sobs heavily as she follows a journey from a relationship defined by pain and dishonesty to one based on unconditional love and trust. She also seems to be acting as humble as her songs profess. Her entourage in Athens consisted of two production people and a friend.
Lauryn is now throwing the entire music industry playbook out the window. She has not only shed her famous locks, but also her former image. For her "Unplugged" show she sat onstage alone with her acoustic guitar, she wore no make-up, sported a close-cropped afro covered by a baseball cap, a simple pair of jeans, a sweatshirt, a jacket and a shawl.
She even said to the audience, "This is the first time y'all are meeting me. Don't think that you met me before." Many people thought she was crazy. But maybe she is just trying to find out who she is. Other performers should be so honest as to let go of all of the glitz and glamour and just present themselves as is. I wonder where music would end up then?
One of the verses on her new album sums up the possibilities of her defiant yet low-key new stance: "What you see is what you get/And you ain't seen nothing yet."
I for one hope there is much more to come.
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