Lauryn Hill educates herself in Israel
Pioneering hip hop soul poet Lauryn Hill has gone through some rough times since her first appearance in Israel eight years ago. But by most indications she is back in top form ahead of her upcoming show at the Live Park Zappa Amphitheater in Rishon Lezion on May 7. Her last album, MTV Unplugged No. 2.0, was released in 2002 and she has kept a low profile ever since, marked by erratic live performances. In 2013, she served a threemonth prison sentence after pleading guilty to tax evasion for failure to pay federal income taxes on $1.8 million earned between 2005 and 2007. However, a review in Billboard of Hill’s show last month at the famed Blue Note in New York City said that her performance “silenced doubts about her vocal prowess. With a six-person band alongside her, Ms. Hill took the stage, sitting comfortably on a vintage two-person couch with her acoustic guitar, reminiscent of her legendary MTV Unplugged special recorded in 2001.” Hill came to prominence in the 1990s as a member of Fugees, together with Wyclef Jean and Pras Michel. Her 1998 solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, thrust her into superstardom and earned her five Grammy awards, including Album of the Year. She was the celebrated voice and face of urban neo-soul and r&b, but has only sporadically surfaced in recent years. According to those recent reports, the time appears to be ripe for Hill to reclaim her throne, and Israeli fans will be able to judge for themselves. Tickets for the Rishon show range from NIS 219-499.