Ms Lauryn Hill is embarking on a global tour to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her seminal album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
Hill’s debut solo record earned her five Grammy Awards at the 1999 ceremony, making her the first woman to win that many in one night and the first hip-hop artist to win Album of the Year.
The singer’s anniversary tour will be co-headlined by her band, the Fugees, reuniting for the first time in years.
In a press release, Hill said: “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is and was a love song to my parents, my family, my people, my musical and cultural forebears, my teachers, my loves, my Creator. I wrote love songs and protest songs – (still love songs) about the subjects and interests that inspired and moved me. I was confident that what inspired me would resonate with an audience that had been led to believe that songs of that kind could only live in the past.”
She continued: “I loved music, I loved people, I truly felt grateful to God for my life, and genuinely blessed to have a platform where I could share wisdom and perspective through music. I felt a charge to challenge the idea that certain kinds of expression and/or certain kinds of people didn’t belong in certain places. I loved showing what could work or happen provided there was imagination, creativity, and LOVE leading the way.”
The tour begins at Mystic Lake in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on 8 September, before moving on to New York and then Australia and New Zealand for four dates, where she’ll be joined by Jamaican singer Koffee.
Lauryn Hill— (Getty Images for ESSENCE)
She’ll then return to North America for 11 more gigs, including dates at Los Angeles’ Kia Forum and the United Center in Chicago.
Hill formed the Fugees with Wyclef Jean and Pras Michel in the early Nineties. Michel is currently awaiting sentencing after being convicted on charges of conspiracy, witness tampering, and failing to register as an agent of China earlier this year. Hill’s announcement did not clarify whether Michel would be involved in the tour.
Tickets go on sale Friday, 25 August at 10am local time via Ticketmaster. Live Nation is offering pre-sale access to fans on Thursday, 25 August, using the access code “TRACK”.
