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Lauryn Hill's path to stardom started in her high school where the Grammy winner formed a band with Prakazrel "Pras" Michel and Wyclef Jean. Later known as the Fugees, the trio catapulted Lauryn Hill into becoming one of the greatest female rappers of all time.
At 21, Hill attended Columbia University, choosing History as her major during her sophomore year. However, she dropped out within a year, after The Score recorded more than a million sales. The rapper has often talked about her education in interviews, stating that her desire to perform well came from the inherent drive to excel in anything she pursued.
How was Lauryn Hill as a student?
Lauryn Hill attended Columbia High School, in Maplewood, New Jersey, where she excelled in both academics and co-curricular activities. The Grammy winner was a member of the cheerleading squad and the track team, and also took violin and dance lessons. Along with that, she founded the school's gospel choir.
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Academically, she always got top grades and was a part of advanced placement classes. Her teachers recognized her as an all-rounder and a leader among the students. Talking about her academic prowess in a 2000 interview with the American Academy of Achievement, Hill explained:
"I had a love for—I don't know if it was necessarily for academics, more than it just was for achieving, period. If it was academics, if it was sports, if it was music, if it was dance, whatever it was, I was always driven to do a lot in whatever field or whatever area I was focusing on at the moment."
Lauryn Hill's finesse as a musician started coming through during her middle school days. During that time, she had performed a rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner before a basketball game. The performance gained such popularity that subsequent games started featuring a recorded version of her rendition.
Singer-rapper founded Fugees as a high school freshman
The inception of Fugees happened when Pras Michel approached Hill about a music group in her freshman year of high school. They were initially named "Translator Crew" as they wanted to make songs in different languages.
Eventually, Michel's cousin Wyclef Jean joined, and the trio was named Fugees, a term abbreviated from the word "refugees."
After performing in school talent shows and local events, the trio signed with Ruffhouse Records in 1993 and released their debut album Blunted On Reality in 1994. Despite not getting rave reviews from critics, Lauryn's rapping became their first album's highlight.
Their second album, however, catapulted the trio to the heights of stardom. Named The Score, Fugees' next album in 1996 peaked at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 and retained its position for over six months. The record bagged the Grammy for Best Rap Album and sold over 20 million copies worldwide, eventually becoming the Fugees' final record before their disbandment in 1997.
Lauryn Hill's single Killing Me Softly With His Song became the biggest hit on the album, winning the Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. Meanwhile, Fu-Gee-Laa and Ready or Not further cemented her position as one of the best female rappers in the industry.
Lauryn Hill went on to become the most decorated female rapper in history with eight Grammys. She was also named the greatest female rapper by Billboard in 2015.
