50 Fun Facts About Lauryn Hill

Lauryn Hill was born in East Orange and raised in South Orange, both in which US state?

At her high school she ran track, cheered, founded the gospel choir and was a classmate of actor Zach Braff.

Which record label signed the Fugees in 1993?

Hill used her earnings from acting to help finance the group before the deal; their name derived from 'refugee', a slur aimed at Haitian Americans.

In Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit, Hill played which surly Catholic-school student?

She sang 'His Eye Is on the Sparrow' and 'Joyful, Joyful' in the film, and director Bill Duke said her rap in one scene was entirely improvised.

Before Sister Act 2, Hill played troubled teenager Kira Johnson on which soap opera?

An agent noticed her in Club XII, MC Lyte's off-Broadway hip-hop take on Twelfth Night, and got her the recurring role.

The title of Hill's 1998 solo debut was partly inspired by a 1933 book by which historian?

Woodson's The Mis-Education of the Negro shared the honour with a film and autobiographical novel, The Education of Sonny Carson.

Which lead single from Hill's debut album entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 1?

It made her the first artist whose first appearances on both the Hot 100 and Billboard 200 debuted at the top.

How many Grammys did Lauryn Hill win in one night in 1999, then a record for a woman?

Her haul included Album of the Year and Best New Artist, and she declared from the stage: 'This is crazy. This is hip-hop!'

Hill was the first artist from which genre to win the Grammy for Album of the Year?

She was also the first rapper to appear on the cover of Time.

Hill's cover of which Roberta Flack song became the Fugees' breakout hit in 1996?

It won the Grammy for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group and crossed over to pop, hip hop and adult contemporary radio.

What was the title of the Fugees' hugely successful second album, released in 1996?

It sold more than 20 million copies worldwide and won the Grammy for Best Rap Album, making Hill the first woman to receive that award.

Where did Hill record The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill?

The studio was founded by a reggae legend whose son Rohan she was by then dating.

Rohan, Hill's long-term partner and the father of five of her children, is a son of which musician?

Rohan had played football at the University of Miami; the two met in the summer of 1996 while Hill was still involved with Wyclef Jean.

Hill's song 'To Zion' was written about her decision to do what?

Some around her had encouraged an abortion so as not to interrupt her career; the pregnancy instead lifted her out of writer's block.

Which Fugees bandmate first approached Hill in high school about forming a group?

Wyclef Jean, Pras's cousin, joined later, replacing another female vocalist.

What was the original name of the group that became the Fugees?

The name was chosen because they wanted to rhyme in different languages.

What was the title of the Fugees' poorly received 1994 debut album?

Their management had pushed them toward gangsta-rap attitudes; Hill's verse on 'Some Seek Stardom' was singled out as a highlight.

What nickname was Hill known by within the Fugees?

Years later she reportedly asked to be addressed as 'Ms. Hill' and considered changing her moniker to 'Empress'.

Hill was studying at which college before sales of The Score persuaded her to leave?

She was considering a history major and still living with her parents at 21.

Hill wrote and produced 'A Rose Is Still a Rose', a late-career hit for which soul legend?

It contributed to Hill becoming the first woman nominated in ten Grammy categories in a single year.

Hill's 'Mystery of Iniquity' was interpolated by Kanye West on which single?

The credit made her a songwriter on West's track; the song came from her divisive MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 album.

Hill's 2002 live album MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 featured her singing accompanied only by which instrument?

Rolling Stone called it 'a public breakdown', yet it debuted at No. 3 and went platinum.

Hill won a second Album of the Year Grammy as a producer on which 1999 blockbuster album?

She wrote, produced and rapped on the track 'Do You Like the Way', which also featured CeeLo Green.

Hill's cover of 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You' was recorded for which 1997 film?

The track earned a Grammy nomination even though it was not on any of her albums.

Hill's posthumous 'virtual duet' with a late reggae icon appeared on which 1999 remix tribute album?

The track also featured in the film The Best Man and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

Which group of musicians sued Hill in 1998, claiming they were not properly credited on Miseducation?

The fifty-page suit was settled out of court in 2001 for a reported $5 million.

Hill's non-profit for at-risk youth, founded in 1996, was called what?

Its board included Mariah Carey, Spike Lee, Busta Rhymes and Sean Combs, and it ran a summer camp in the Catskills.

Where did Hill denounce clergy sexual-abuse cover-ups during a 2003 Christmas concert?

The Pope was not present; the Catholic League called her 'pathologically miserable' and her remarks were cut from the broadcast.

Hill was sentenced in 2013 to three months in prison for what offence?

She served the sentence at the minimum-security federal prison in Danbury, Connecticut, and was released a few days early for good behaviour.

Hill's 2013 single 'Consumerism' was finished how?

She released it right after her release in October 2013 and was allowed to postpone part of her home confinement to tour.

Hill's 2014 protest song responding to the killing of Michael Brown was titled what?

She also performed it at an Amnesty International benefit in support of Pussy Riot.

Lauryn Hill recorded six songs for a 2015 documentary about which singer and civil-rights activist?

She was originally booked for two songs and co-produced the compilation with Robert Glasper.

Lauryn Hill declined to join Maroon 5 at the Super Bowl LIII halftime show in solidarity with whom?

The quarterback had faced backlash for kneeling during the national anthem.

Hill's surprise 2024 return to the stage came during her son's set at which festival?

She was joined by Wyclef Jean for a run of Fugees hits.

Which former bandmate sued Hill in October 2024 over the cancelled Fugees reunion tour?

He had already released a diss track called 'Bar Mitzfa'; Hill replied that he had been overpaid and owed her loans.

Hill's 2026 Grammy performance led an In Memoriam tribute to two late collaborators. Which two?

It was her first Grammy stage appearance since 1999, and she was joined by Wyclef Jean for the Fugees' biggest hit.

Hill's 1998 debut sold roughly how many copies in its first week in the US?

It was a first-week record for a female artist at the time and the album spent four weeks atop the Billboard 200.

Hill's Grammy tally of eight stands as the most for what category of artist?

Her other honours include the inaugural BET Living Legend Icon Award and induction into the National Recording Registry.

Which brand dressed Lauryn Hill's Miseducation Tour, an early Fortune 500 partnership with a Black musician?

Armani also designed looks for the tour, one of which appeared at the 1999 'Rock Style' Met Gala.

Hill's 1988 amateur-night appearance on It's Showtime at the Apollo saw her sing a song by which artist?

She stumbled early on 'Who's Lovin' You', drew a mixed reaction, and pushed through to applause.

Hill's 2019 song 'Guarding the Gates' was recorded for the soundtrack of which film?

It was one of the few new studio recordings she released in the 2010s.

In Sister Act 2, Hill sang 'His Eye Is on the Sparrow' as a duet with which singer?

The scene became one of the film's most replayed moments. Director Bill Duke said a rap Hill performs in another scene was entirely improvised.

Which Scrubs actor was a high-school classmate of Lauryn Hill?

At school Hill ran track, cheered, took violin lessons and founded the gospel choir, while mostly pulling A grades in advanced placement classes.

What small role did Hill play in Steven Soderbergh's 1993 film King of the Hill?

The part was minor but pivotal, and a Soderbergh biographer credited her with one of the warmest scenes in the Depression-era drama.

Which leaked 2010 song gave Hill her first Billboard chart entry as lead artist since 1999?

It debuted at No. 94 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and peaked at No. 83 the following week, despite never being officially released.

Hill's song 'I Find It Hard to Say (Rebel)' was originally written about the police killing of whom?

Hill revisited the track in 2016 as simply 'Rebel', releasing it exclusively on Tidal and performing it at a Jay-Z-hosted charity concert.

In 2024 Hill appeared on which concept album by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Eisa Davis?

The album reimagines a 1979 cult film about New York street gangs, with the gang recast as women.

In 2021 Hill's debut became the first album by a female rapper to earn which RIAA certification?

The award marks ten million units in the US, a milestone the album reached some 23 years after its release.

Ahead of the 1999 Grammys, Hill became the first woman nominated in how many categories?

The nominations stretched beyond her own album to her soundtrack cover for Conspiracy Theory and a hit she wrote for Aretha Franklin.

After her solo debut, Hill became the first rapper to appear on the cover of which magazine?

That same year she also made People's 50 Most Beautiful People list and became the youngest woman on Ebony's most influential Black Americans list.

Hill's Refugee Project ran a camp for at-risk youth offering stays in which mountains?

The non-profit also staged an annual Halloween haunted house in East Orange and put Sean Combs, Mariah Carey and Spike Lee on its board of trustees.