Lauryn Hill dropped a classic and then dipped out. The dazzlingly talented singer and rapper won five Grammy Awards for her 1998 debut, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, effectively turning her into a solo superstar. The anticipation for what she would do next was feverish, and yet, "next" never came. Hill has spent the 21st century touring and making the occasional guest appearance on other albums. The follow up to Miseducation became a mythic concept on par with Dr. Dre's Detox. According to Hill, however, the wait is almost over.
The singer has been making waves as of late. She commemorated the 25th anniversary of Miseducation with a string of sold out concerts, and she recently performed a medley alongside her son YG Marley on The Tonight Show. Hill and Marley were approached by TMZ after the taping of The Tonight Show, and asked about the possibility of the former dropping a second album. Marley took a long pause before he responded, but when he did, he smiled. "Music is on the way," he revealed. "For real this time." He then teased the possibility of appearing on the album alongside his mother.
Lauryn Hill Hasn't Released New Music Since 2002
The real bombshell came when TMZ approached Lauryn Hill. The outlet asked the icon whether she has any plans to release a sophomore effort, and she nodded her head. When asked when, Hill simply smiled and said "soon." This isn't the first time Hill has been asked about a second album, but it is the first time she's been so definitive about it coming out. Assuring fans that new music is coming "soon" is a far cry from the bitter stance that Hill took during a 2021 interview with Rolling Stone. She claimed the success of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill made it difficult for her to make an authentic follow-up.
Hill claimed that she was never actually asked whether she wanted to make another album. "No one from my label ever called me and asked how can we help you make another album ever," she recalled. "People had included me in their own narratives of their successes, I was considered an enemy." Hill did put out a live album in 2002, MTV Unplugged No. 2.0. It was derided by fans and critics, yet has come to be seen as a cult classic. It's possible that Hill could delay the release of her official sophomore album again, but this assurance has been the most exciting development for fans in well over a decade.
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