It is highly unusual for an artist of this day in age to become a music legend after just one solo album and no more to follow. Lauryn Hill was an exception to this rarity, who managed to become a Hip-Hop icon with her one and only debut solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill released in 1998. This album won her an outstanding five awards at the 1999 Grammy Awards Show in which she responded with "awards are like whipped cream, man." Even 23 years after the release of her incredibly successful and popular album, Lauryn Hill has still managed to remain relevant in the world of Hip-Hop.

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How is it even possible for an artist to remain their stature in such an incredibly competitive industry without releasing new music for over two decades? Ms. Lauryn Hill is walking proof of the rare phenomenon and continues to influence artists of all genres to this day. Keep scrolling through to find out just exactly how the mother, activist, and music legend herself continues to stay relevant in Hip Hop today.

7 Expanded Parameters of Hip-Hop

It's hard to imagine a world where singing and rapping are not done together in hip-hop songs. There are multiple instances in hip-hop today where songs infuse rap and melodic vocals together in some shape or form. Although Drake likes to consider himself the first to "successfully sing and rap," the true pioneer was Lauryn Hill. She first debuted the melding of rapping and singing while she was in the 1992 band The Fugees. One song, in particular, showcased this musical rarity, "Ready or Not" found in their second album released in 1996 titled The Score. Lauryn continued to successfully showcase her rapping and singing skills on multiple songs in The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which influenced many artists to come. Without Lauryn Hill and her will to push boundaries and expectations, many doors might still remain closed in hip-hop.

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6 Timeless Lyrics

Lauryn explained her musical vision during an interview with Rolling Stone, saying, " I want to write lyrics that moved me and have the integrity of reggae and the knock of hip-hop and the instrumentation of classic soul." It is safe to say that her lyrics continue to move many people to this day as her album is still ranked number 10 on Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums of All Times List this year. The BBC news broadcaster, Trevor Nelson greatly explained the success of her lyrics saying "She went against the grain and brought credibility - At the time it was all about shiny videos, with girls in bikinis, but the substance was lacking. Lauryn hill brought the substance to the game at a major level." She created lyrics that you could feel and relate to which continue to remain relevant to this day.

5 Changed The Path For Female Hip-Hop Artists

Lauryn changed what it meant to be a black female artist in hip-hop at the time, which carved a better path for future female hip-hop artists to come. She was the first to outwardly express female empowerment in an honest and vulnerable way. Many of her songs from The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill talk about motherhood, women respecting themselves, and love through the lens of a black female, which was never mentioned before. The founder of the MOBO Awards, Kanya King expressed how this album still remains impactful today, " Miseducation lifted boundaries for female artists. Recorded while she was heavily pregnant, her debut album busted through the industry's glass ceiling; rejecting society's notion that a female artist must choose between starting a family and having a career."

4 Challenged The Norm

Not only did Lauryn challenge the way music was normally made in hip-hop she defied the normal behaviors exhibited throughout the music industry at the time. She went against the pressures of choosing a career over family, she fought to get paid for interviews, and ultimately fought to have freedom and power in an industry that lacks to give over any control to the artist. As for challenging the norm musically, Lauryn explained in an interview with Rolling Stone how her album confronted expectations. She told Rolling Stone, "The album stood apart from the types and cliches that were supposed to be acceptable at that time. I challenged the norm and introduced a new standard. I believe The Miseducation did that and I believe I still do this — defy convention when the convention is questionable. I had to move faster and with greater intention though than the dysfunctional norms that were well-established and fully funded then."

3 Blended Genres Together

Just as well as Lauryn introduced the combination of rapping and singing to hip-hop, she also welcomed the world of blending multiple genres together to this style of music. Lauryn's interpretation of "Killing Me Softly With His Song" by Roberta Flack was the first we got to experience her beautiful blending together of hip-hop, reggae, and soul music. Simon Witter from The Guardian wrote that her music "sandwiches a variety of influences between the drums and bass of hip-hop/raggea and the lyricism of the classic soul tradition, seasoning the whole with a cracklingly live production. There isn't yet a name for her sound." Many artists continue to blend various genres of music in hip-hop all of the time like Kendrick Lamar, Tyler the Creator, and Kanye West.

2 Ahead Of Her Time

Lauryn's been bringing important matters and voices to light since the beginning of her career. She told Rolling Stone that she wants to "make music that communicates issues that arent always on the top of the agenda and for people who aren't always spoken for " which was not done before by female hip-hop artists. She continued to tell Rolling Stone, "I wrote an album about systemic racism and how it represses and stunts growth and harms (all of my albums have probably addressed systemic racism to some degree) before this was something this generation openly talked about. I was called crazy. Now...over a decade later, we hear this as part of the mainstream chorus." Her decision to do so has still influenced many artists such as Noname, Miguel, and H.E.R. to create songs of protest.

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1 Endless Influence On Artists

Lauryn has managed to influence so many different artists of all genres to create music, ultimately resulting in her relevant status today and for years to come. Aside from the fact that her music is still played and enjoyed by many as if it was still the late 90's. Most recently, her songs have been referenced and sampled in songs by Drake, Cardi B, and Rihanna. During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Beyonce said that Lauryn Hill was the key inspiration to her music. Adele being another popular artist has expressed how influential Lauryn was to her saying that The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was her favorite album. Many hip-hop, R&B, and Soul songs created today can be greatly credited to the work done by Lauryn Hill and the influence she continues to have on artists.

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