In November 1998, freshly split from the Fugees, Ms Lauryn Hill dropped her first solo album: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. In Hill’s words, she set out to “write songs that lyrically move me and have the integrity of reggae and the knock of hip-hop and the instrumentation of classic soul.” Miseducation busted all three genres wide open, becoming wildly successful and influential in the process and ending up on every top albums list, magazine cover and sales chart possible. Recorded largely at the studio Bob Marley built, Tuff Gong studios in Kingston, Jamaica (while she was pregnant with his grandchild no less), the heart and soul of Miseducation is driven by a plucky reggae groove and a lyrical predisposition towards love and personal growth. The influence of soul is represented in Hill’s soaring hooks and the sugar-coated, Motown flavoured doo-wop embellishments that underpin many of the songs as well as in the dazzling guest spots from D’Angelo and Missy Elliott. Finally, the effect Miseducation had on the hip-hop community is singular – to a market oversaturated by violent, materialistic and heavily sexualised gangsta rap, Miseducation was a breath of fresh air. A strong, visionary female MC with a message of love was a wake-up call to established artists and an inspiration to many more. After the release of Miseducation, a bitter legal battle with production team New Ark over credit and compensation led to Hill’s extended retreat from the public eye making this record and her MTV unplugged session her only solo records. If anything, the scarcity of her work makes Miseducation even more precious.
Pete Whelan 