The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill made it into the exclusive Diamond Record Holder’s Club

BY JONEL PANTLITZ

On February 16^th, 2021, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) announced that Lauryn and her debut album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill made it into the exclusive diamond record holder’s club.

The Diamond Awards honors those artists whose sales of singles or albums reached 10,000,000 copies. Lauryn Hill is now officially the first female rapper to achieve a Diamond-certified record. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is one of a few rap albums to have received this recognition; she has joined the likes of: Tupac Shakur (All Eyez on Me), OutKast (Speakerboxxxx/The Love Below), The Notorious B.I.G. (Life After Death), Nelly (Country Grammar), Michael Jackson (Thriller) etc.

Lauryn Noelle Hill is an African American: singer, rapper, songwriter, actress and record producer. Lauryn Hill was born in East Orange, New Jersey, on May 26^th, 1975. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of many influential artists in her generation. As of September 2020, the artist’s net-worth is nine million dollars.

On August 25^th, 1998, Lauryn Hill released her debut album called The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill; the album debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200 chart and sold over 422,000 copies in its first week. It also earned Lauryn Hill ten Grammy nominations and five Grammy wins including Album of the Year, Best R&B Album, and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for “Doo Wop (That Thing). Mary J. Blige, one of the featured artists on the album, regarded the album to be “One of the most incredible albums ever made.” The album had a major impact influencing a generation of soul and hip-hop artists.

“To understand the significance of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, it’s important to remember what mainstream hip-hop was like in 1998. Materialism and misogyny were rampant, fanned by music videos that presented women as objects or conquests. Hill’s first solo album provided a sharp counterpoint by injecting the perspective of a young black woman dealing with identity and sexuality.” – Apple Music

Many expected a second album after Lauryn Hill first album performed exceptionally and in a recent interview with Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums podcast, she talked about how things had changed, “The wild thing is no one from my label has ever called me and asked how we can help you make another album, EVER…EVER. Did I say ever? Ever!” 

Hill explained, “With the Miseducation, there was no precedent. I was, for the most part, free to explore, experiment, and express. After the Miseducation, there were scores of tentacled obstructionists, politics, repressing agendas, unrealistic expectations, and saboteurs EVERYWHERE. People had included me in their own narratives of their successes as it pertained to my album, and if this contradicted my experience, I was considered an enemy.”

She proceeded, “I think my intention was simply to make something that made my foremothers and forefathers in music and social and political struggle know that someone received what they’d sacrificed to give us, and to let my peers know that we could walk in that truth, proudly and confidently. At that time, I felt like it was a duty or responsibility to do so. … 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.”

Lauryn Hill also discussed how her album explores systemic racism. “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,” she said. “Ok, so chalk some of it up to leadership and how that works—I was clearly ahead, but you also have to acknowledge the blatant denial that went down with that. The public abuse and ostracizing while suppressing and copying what I had done, (I protested) with still no real acknowledgement that all of that even happened, is a lot.”