Lauryn Hill

Hill was involved with her band mate Jean in a romantic relationship for a very long time, even after he got married to Claudinette. It led to the splitting of ‘The Fugees’ as it was a turbulent relationship.

In 1996, Hill got involved with Rohan Marley—son of the legendary singer Bob Marley—and they have five children together.

In 2012, she was charged with tax evasion of about 1.8 million US dollars. By next year she paid the government 50,000 US dollars out of the whole amount, still owing them 554000 US dollars.

Lauryn Hill was born in South Orange, New Jersey to Valerie and Mal Hill. Her father was a computer and management consultant and her mother used to teach English at a school. She belonged to a middle-class household.

She grew up in a musically charged environment; her mother used play the piano and father used to sing. He used to sing in local clubs and at weddings. Hill became popular at her school for her singing talent.

She went to the Columbia High School, where she was a cheerleader. She learnt to play the violin, dance and was a part of the school’s gospel choir. She formed a music group with Pras Michel and Jean.

The group was called ‘Tranzlator Crew’ and they started to perform in local shows and high school talent shows. She started as a singer first but slowly became a rapper as well. She also took acting lessons in Manhattan while growing up.

In 1991, Hill made her first appearance in an Off-Broadway called ‘Club XII’, which was a hip-hop version of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. She was noticed by an agent, which fetched her small, recurring role in the soap opera ‘As the World Turns’.

In 1993, Hill appeared in ‘Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit’ alongside Whoopi Goldberg. She performed two songs in it: ‘His Eye Is on the Sparrow’ and ‘Joyful, Joyful’. She also appeared in Steven Soderbergh’s ‘King of the Hill’.

In 1994, after changing their band’s name from ‘Tranzlator Crew’ to ‘The Fugees’, their album ‘Blunted on Reality’ was released. Although, the album was not a commercial successful, Hill gained a lot of popularity for her ‘rapsy alto voice’.

In 1996, ‘The Fugees’ second album ‘The Score’ was released. It went No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 straightaway. It won the Gammy for Best Rap Album and the single ‘Killing Me Softly’ won the Grammy for Best R&B Performance by a Duo.

In the same year, Hill founded the ‘Refugee Project’, which was a non-profit organization whose aim was to bring change in the attitudes and lifestyle of troubled urban youth. She also raised money for Haitian refugees.

Hill’s album ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’, released in 1998, brought her five Grammy Awards—for album of the year, best new artist, best female R&B performance, best R&B song ("Doo Wop (That Thing)") and best R&B album.