Lauryn Hill
By: Arcelia Marquez
How Did Lauryn Hill's Music Inspire American Society?
Origin of Ms. Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Hill started out working with the famous group the "Fugees" in which she gained popularity with their hit song, "KIlling Me Softly". However due to conflict between group members, Hill went solo. She released her first solo album "Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" in which she expressed her ways of moving through life giving inspiration to society of realty. Although she tried to get out of the celebrity world, she never stopped sharing her thoughts of illusions and life lessons. She released a series of live (unplugged) songs using just her guitar and her beautiful voice to continue to inspire people and reveal the secrets behind the curtain.
"I Find It Hard To Say" (Rebel) (Unplugged)
The message to the song is to face reality. Humanity lives in an illusion and are afraid to face it. There is more to someone and they should "rebel " to become a better person.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZlTK7mTpPs
How She Is Different
Most artists, during Lauryn Hill's time and even to today, their songs are mostly about love and rebellious actions, however, Lauryn wanted society to understand her actions and the things she went through. She taught lessons based on her personal experience in order to get other people living a lie to choose the right path. Hill steered more towards helping society by telling her own story and that's what makes her different.
"Adam Lives In Theory"
This song is once again about how humanity lives in an illusion. However this song goes more in depth of the fantasies that people live in. In this song she uses the allusion of the biblical story of Adam and Eve to explain her point.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8u9jr05Mjc&list=PLMldaYR2kN7pXRqZC4MAxAE9-_6OCxqua&index=3
The Change
In the past Hill's songs consisted of love and heartbreak; now she sings about getting out of the illusions of love and humanity. She now focuses on getting the word out about reality and what it contains. These songs are inspirations for society to realize what they are made of and that they are able to pursue more than what they think.
"To Zion"
This song tells the story of Lauryn Hill's first child. Most people around her wanted her to get an abortion however she knew that her child would grow up to be great. This song is inspiring to mothers who become pregnant and are judged by others, to follow their own hearts and make their own decisions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sQjh261rU8
Citations
- www.matermea.com/blog/lauryn-hill-miseducation-inspiration
- www.identitytheory.com/lauryn-hill-unplugged/
- https://www.npr.org/2010/06/28/128149135/the-many-voices-of-lauryn-hill
- https://genius.com/Lauryn-hill-to-zion-lyrics
- https://genius.com/Lauryn-hill-i-find-it-hard-to-say-rebel-lyrics
- https://genius.com/Lauryn-hill-adam-lives-in-theory-lyrics