S. Samuel
Grammy-winning singer Lauryn Hill kept true to reports of preparing to take the nation by storm once again with a slew of performances by hitting the stage this week in New York City.
According to accounts from concertgoers, Hill lived up to the hype and then some when she let her vocals loose Wednesday (November 27) night.
Throughout her two-hour set, her musicians were watching for her signals; to bear down on a vamp or silence it, to unveil pretty, elaborately planned vocal counterpoint from her three backup singers or to whip up a churchy fervor. There were some moments that seemed like an open rehearsal, but many more that had been well plotted to give old songs new life. “Lost Ones,” from 1998, arrived with two reinvented grooves, switching halfway through: first 1960s soul, then reggae. “I have to make these songs sustainable to perform,” Ms. Hill said. “You wouldn’t want me to just, like a robot, do the same thing every night.” (New York Times)
While Hill has not caved in to fans’ pleas for a reunion, she did pay homage to her Fugees family during the night.
At the Bowery, she made “Consumerism” her first encore, riding the shouts and squeals of the crowd as she returned to the stage. But that was the only new material, except for a rap that her son Joshua, appearing amid the encores, read from a smartphone. The rest of the songs were familiar: songs from “Miseducation,” Fugees material (in which Ms. Hill rapped verses from the other two Fugees members along with her own), songs from Stevie Wonder and Bob Marley and a full-length version of “I Only Have Eyes for You” leading into the Fugees song that sampled it, “Zealots” (with an unrehearsed guest appearance from the Fugees’ producer and bassist, Jerry Duplessis). Songs that had been hip-hop were recast as reggae, funk and rock; the Fugees’ “How Many Mics” was mashed up with “Can’t Stand Losing You” by the Police. Ms. Hill also sang “Happy Birthday” for an audience member. (New York Times)
According to reports, L-Boogie also has upcoming show dates in Washington, DC, Massachusetts and New Jersey.
Earlier this week, Lauryn Hill announced her first two post-prison concerts to take place on Thanksgiving Eve (November 27) at the Bowery Ballroom. Along with these previously announced dates, Ms. Hill will be going on an additional run of shows on the East Coast from November 27 to December 28. After serving three months in prison on tax evasion earlier this year, Hill was granted permission by a judge to go on tour before being scheduled to return home on January 1. The rapper/singer will then finish out the remaining three months of her court-sentenced house arrest. You can see the dates for Lauryn Hill’s tour below: 11-27 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom (Early & Late shows) 12-15 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club 12-18 – Boston, MA – Le Royale 12-22 – Red Bank, NJ – Count Basie Theatre 12-26 -Huntington, NY – The Paramount 12-28 -Port Chester, NY – The Capitol Theatre (XXL Mag)
October reports revealed Lauryn had a request to tour approved by a judge following her stint behind bars.
Lauryn has been confined to 3-months of home detention as part of her sentence for tax evasion — but here’s the thing … She wants to go on tour from Nov. 15th through Dec. 31st, so she asked the judge to give her a pass so she could tour — and we’ve learned the judge is down with it. As we reported … Lauryn was freed from jail last week and she wants to resume her career STAT. Lauryn — who has a new single out — can now start signing on at specific venues for the concerts. But prison officials will still keep tabs on her — she’ll have to run all the details — dates, cities, hotels — past her probation officer. On New Year’s Day … the party’s over, and Lauryn will have to return home to complete her home detention sentence. (TMZ)
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Check out some of Lauryn Hill’s performance:
