Music / The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

And deep in my heart, the answer it was in me
And I made up my mind to define my own destiny

"Lauryn Hill was groundbreaking because for the first time since Salt-N-Pepa the world was hearing a heterosexual woman rap and couldn't believe it. This is a masterpiece of a record. I know there's a lot of singing on there, but there's a lot of rapping, too. People don't have a problem with conscious rap; they have a problem with conscious beats. If you make some ignorant beats, you can say all the smart shit you want."

— Chris Rock, who put The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill on #23 in his personal top 25 favorite Hip-Hop albums, Rolling Stone, 2006.

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is Lauryn Hill's first and only solo album, released in 1998 after The Fugees broke up. An impressive debut, Miseducation was notable because of both its thematic matter and its production.

The album's lyrics spoke on the in-house turmoil within the Fugees alongside Lauryn's wider perspectives on life through subjects like love, womanhood and God, all of which were influenced by her being pregnant at the time.

Furthermore, the album was unique since Lauryn actually sang more than she rapped and didn't overly rely on samples or contemporary references, giving the record a more timeless quality than most other rap albums from The '90s.

The album's success was unprecedented for not only a female artist but an artist in her genres of rap and soul. It debuted atop the Billboard 200 and won several awards, including five Grammys from ten nominations, one of which was the Album of the Year. Three singles released in promotion for the album — "Doo Wop (That Thing)", "Ex-Factor" and "Everything Is Everything" — were all worldwide hits.

Sadly, despite a promising start, Lauryn's career was quickly cut short. She suffered a Creator Breakdown, and apart from one Live Album, MTV Unplugged 2.0. (2002), she never released anything else, effectively disappearing from the public limelight.

In 2014 the record was added to the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically and aesthetically important."

In 2018, she starting touring in support of this album's twentieth anniversary.

Tracklist

1. "Intro" (0:47)
2. "Lost Ones" (5:33)
3. "Ex-Factor" (5:26)
4. "To Zion" (6:08)
5. "Doo Wop (That Thing)" (5:19)
6. "Superstar" (4:56)
7. "Final Hour" (4:15)
8. "When It Hurts So Bad" (5:42)
9. "I Used To Love Him" (5:39)
10. "Forgive Them Father" (5:15)
11. "Every Ghetto, Every City" (5:14)
12. "Nothing Even Matters" (5:49)
13. "Everything Is Everything" (4:58)
14. "The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill" (4:17)

US bonus tracks

1. "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (3:41)
2. "Sweetest Thing (Mahogany Mix)" (4:42)

Import bonus/hidden tracks

1. "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (3:41)
2. "Tell Him" (4:38)

That was the trope that did Jezebel in

• All Girls Want Bad Boys: In "Doo Wop (That Thing)" she rallies against this trope, telling young women not to go with men they know will treat them badly as "respect is just a minimum". Interestingly, it also warns guys not to go with women that are only about "that thing".
  Showing off your ass cause you're thinking it's a trend
  Girlfriend, let me break it down for you again
  You know I only say it cause I'm truly genuine
  Don't be a hard rock when you really are a gem
  Baby girl, respect is just a minimum
  Niggas fucked up and you still defending 'em
• Alliterative Title: "Forgive Them Father", "Everything Is Everything".
• As the Good Book Says...:
  • "Lost Ones" refers to Matthew 16:26 and Mark 8:36.
  Gain the whole world for the price of your soul
  Every man wanna act like he's exempt
  Need to get down on his knees and repent
  Can't slick talk on the day of judgment
  Your movement's similar to a serpent
  • "Doowop That Thing"
  Talking out your neck, sayin' you're a Christian
  A Muslim, sleeping with the gin
  Now that was the sin that did Jezebel in
  • "Tell Him" incorporates several verses from "Corinthians 13".
  • "Doowop That Thing" refers to the first Surah in the Qu'ran, about the straight path, or the way of life which makes God happy.
  Don't forget about the deen, Sirat al-Mustaqeem
  • "Final Hour":
  Our survival since our arrival documented in The Bible
  Like Moses and Aaron
  Things gon' change, it's apparent
  And all the transparent gonna be seen through
  Let God redeem you, keep your deen true
  You can get the green too
  Watch out what you cling to, observe how a queen do
  And I remain calm reading the 73rd Psalm
  Cause with all that’s going on I got the world in my palm
  • In "I Used To Love Him" Lauryn says her faith in God helped her get over a breakup.
  • "Forgive Them Father" is literally full of biblical metaphors and references to religious icons and phrases. The title refers to Jesus Christ's request to God to forgive the people who crucified them. Throughout the song Lauryn namedrops Menelik ^note  the first Jewish emperor of Ethiopia , Cain, Abel, Jesus and Judas.
• Beware the Nice Ones: "Forgive Them Father"
  Beware the false motives of others
  Be careful of those who pretend to be brothers
  And you never suppose it's those who are closest to you
• Bilingual Bonus: "Forgive Them Father" and "Lost Ones" both feature singing in patois, the local dialect of Jamaica.
• Break Up Song: "When It Hurts So Bad", "I Used To Love Him" and "Ex-Factor"
  Is this just a silly game
  That forces you to act this way?
  Forces you to scream my name
  Then pretend that you can't stay
  Tell me, who I have to be
  To get some reciprocity
  No one loves you more than me
  And no one ever will
• Call-Back: "Superstar" reflects back on Lauryn's career with the Fugees and namedrops the first Fugees' album "Blunted On Reality". During "Final Hour" she also references The Score:
  Collecting residuals from "The Score"
• Call to Adventure: "The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill":
  I hear so many cry for help
  Searching outside of themselves
  Now I know his strength is within me
  And deep in my heart, the answer it was in me
  And I made up my mind to define my own destiny
• Capitalism Is Bad: "Forgive Them Father"
  Get yours in this capitalistic system
  So many caught or got bought you can't list them
• Cover Version: "Can't Take My Eyes Off You", a Frankie Valli cover which appeared earlier on the soundtrack of Conspiracy Theory (1997).
• Face on the Cover: Lauryn's face carved in wood.
• Genre Mashup: The album incorporates Hip-Hop, Gospel Music, Soul, Contemporary R&B and Reggae.
• God-Is-Love Songs: See As the Good Book Says... above.
• Good Girls Avoid Abortion: "Zion" addresses that Lauryn was advised to abort her pregnancy, as not to conflict with her blossoming career, but she actually chose for her child instead.
  I knew his life deserved a chance
  But everybody told me to be smart
  "Look at your career," they said
  "Lauryn baby use your head."
  But instead I chose to use my heart
• Gospel Choirs Are Just Better: "Zion" is accompanied by a gospel choir.
• Heavy Meta: "Superstar"
  Say what? Hip-Hop, started out in the heart
  Yo, now everybody tryin to chart
• Hidden Track: A Cover Version of "Can't Take My Eyes off of You" (originally recorded for the Conspiracy Theory soundtrack) and the original song "Tell Him" appear at the end of the album following the Title Track, but go unlisted on the packaging. "Can't Take My Eyes off of You" ended up having its presence spoiled by the hype sticker (since it was included entirely to bank on its massive amounts of airplay), but the inclusion of "Tell Him" remained undisclosed.
• Homage: "To Zion" is a tribute to her first child of the same name.
• Karma: "Lost Ones"
  Consequence is no conincidence
  (...)Never underestimate those who you scar
  Cause karma, karma, karma comes back to you hard!
• Literary Allusion Title: The title plays off the title The Mis-Education of the Negro (1933) by Carter G. Woodson, a sociological book about the notion that Afro-Americans of his day were being culturally indoctrinated, rather than taught, in American schools, causing them to seek out inferior places in the greater society of which they are a part.
• Mama Bear: "Lost Ones"
  Now understand "L-Boogie's" non-violent
  But if a thing test me, run for my gun
  Can't take a threat to my new born son
• One-Word Title: "Superstar".
• Parental Love Song: "To Zion" is about Hill's first child Zion.
• Pep-Talk Song: "Everything Is Everything"
  Everything Is Everything
  What is meant to be, will be
  After winter, must come spring
  Change, it comes eventually
• The Power of Love: "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" and "Tell Him". All throughout the record a classroom discussion about love can be heard.
• Real Life Writes the Plot: Hill reflects on her collaboration with fellow Fugees members Wyclef Jean, with whom she had a relationship, and Pras Michel. Several songs are even suspected to be subtle Take That! attacks on them, such as "Lost Ones", "Superstar", "Ex-Factor" and "Forgive Them Father". "Superstar" and "Every Ghetto, Every City" specifically mention her past and how her career took off. She also addresses her first pregnancy and dedicated "To Zion" to her first child.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: "Lost Ones", widely thought to be a Take That! at Wyclef Jean.
  My emancipation don't fit your equation
  I was on the humble you on every station
  Some wan' play young Lauryn like she dumb
  But remember not a game new under the sun
  Everything you did has already been done
• Sampling:
  • "Lost Ones" has a sample from "Super Hoe" by Boogie Down Productions and "Bam Bam" by Sister Nancy.
  • "Ex-Factor" samples "Can It Be All So Simple?" by Wu-Tang Clan.
  • "To Zion" interpolates "And The Feeling's Good" by José Feliciano.
  • "Doo Wop (That Thing)" samples "Together Let's Find Love" by The Fifth Dimension.
  • "Superstar" has a sample from "Light My Fire" by The Doors from The Doors.
  • "I Used To Love Him" samples "Ice Cream" by Raekwon.
  • "Forgive Them Father" relies on a sample from "Concrete Jungle" from Catch a Fire by Bob Marley.
  • "Every Ghetto, Every City" samples "Heaven And Hell Is On Earth" by the 20th Century Steel Band.
• Shout-Out:
  • The album cover is a shout-out to the cover of Bob Marley and the Wailers' album Burnin'.
  • Near the end of "Lost Ones" the teacher asks the children in his classroom if they know any songs or films about love. As a result "Love" by Kirk Franklin, "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston and Titanic and "Romeo and Juliet" (probably meaning 1996's William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet) are mentioned.
  • "Superstar" references Jesus Christ Superstar
  Just as Christ was a superstar, you stupid sir
  They hail you, then they nail you, no matter who you are
  • "Forgive Them Father" references the 1976 protests in Soweto, South Africa against apartheid, Geppetto from Pinocchio, Julius Caesar and Brutus.
  • "Every Ghetto, Every City" references Doug E Fresh, Slick Rick and Biz Markie.
  • "Everything Is Everything" references Cleopatra VII, Nefertiti and Betty El Shabazz, widow of Malcolm X.
• Singer Name Drop: Her name is mentioned during "Doowop That Thing", "Superstar" and "Final Hour"
• Special Guest: Carlos Santana plays guitar during "To Zion", "I Used To Love Him" features Mary J. Blige and "Nothing Even Matters" D' Angelo. "Everything Is Everything" also features the first commercial appearance of a very young John Legend on piano. Stephen Marley, son of Bob Marley, plays guitar on "Forgive Them Father", while dancehall artist Shelley Thunder also appears. The classroom skits between the tracks are done by Ras Baraka, a politician and activist, who is also a high school principal.
• Spelling Song: An unusual example. The track "Lost Ones" ends with a teacher telling his pupils to spell the word "love".
• Stock Sound Effects: Throughout the album recordings are heard from a classroom discussion between a teacher and his pupils about love.
• Take That!:
  • "Lost Ones", "Superstar", "Ex-Factor" and "Forgive Them Father" are rumored to be aimed at her former Fugees band members.
  • "Doowop That Thing" targets certain men:
  Let's stop pretend, the ones that pack pistols by they waist men
  Cristal by the case men, still in they mother's basement
  The pretty face men claiming that they did a bid men
  Need to take care of they three or four kids
  And they face a court case when the child support late
  Money taking and heart breaking, now you wonder why women hate men
  The sneaky, silent men
  The punk, domestic violence men
  Quick to shoot the semen, stop acting like boys and be men
  How you gonna win when you ain't right within?
  • ... but the same song also targets certain women:
  Baby girl, respect is just a minimum
  Niggas fucked up and you still defending 'em
  Now, Lauryn is only human
  Don't think I haven't been through the same predicament
  Let it sit inside your head like a million women in Philly, Penn
  It's silly when girls sell their souls because it's in
  Look at where you be in, hair weaves like Europeans
  Fake nails done by Koreans
  Guys you know you'd better watch out
  Some girls, some girls are only about
  That thing, that thing, that thing
  That thing, that thing, that thing
  • "Superstar" addresses the commercialization of hiphop:
  Yo hip-hop, started out in the heart
  Uh-huh, yo
  Now everybody tryin to chart
• Title Track: "The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill"

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