Albums with Alex: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

“The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” written by Lauryn Hill is an influential album that any fan of music should listen to.

Released in 1998, this album would go on to earn Hill 10 Grammy nominations and five awards at the 41st Annual Grammy Awards, also earning Hill the record of being the first woman to receive that many nominations and awards in one night.

This Women’s History Month, you should give a listen to this project, as it’s not just one of the best albums created by a woman, but one of the best albums released throughout recorded history.

Yes, “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” is THAT good. If you’re a fan of hip-hop and haven’t listened to this album, there’s a chance you may have heard music with Hill’s fingerprints on it.

The third track from “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill”, “Ex-Factor”, has been sampled in some of the most commercially successful songs in the country of the past few years, including Cardi B’s “Be Careful” and Drake’s “Nice For What,” which debuted at No. 1 on the “Billboard Hot 100” chart in April 2018.

Let’s say you’re not a fan of the recent wave of hip-hop; that’s okay, because Hill’s influence stretches through a great deal of hip-hop enthusiasts and artists.

You can hear a bit of one of her most successful singles off of “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” album, “Doo-Wop (That Thing)” in Madlib’s (or Quasimoto in this case, as this is under Madlib’s side project as himself and his alter ego “Lord Quas”) “LAX to JFK”.

Seeing artists from such different moments in hip-hop and R&B history all be influenced by this one album is a testament to its quality.

With some of the most successful artists in recent years crediting Hill as an inspiration, do yourself a favor and get familiar with “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” and the rest of her discography, including her work as a third of the almost equally influential hip-hop trio “Fugees”.