The Fugees
Encyclopedia
Fugees (ˈfuːdʒiːz) were a Haitian American hip hop
group who rose to fame in the mid-1990s. Their repertoire included elements of Hip hop
, soul
and Caribbean
music, particularly reggae
. The members of the group were rapper/singer/producer
Wyclef Jean
, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill
, and rapper Pras Michel
. Deriving their name from the term refugee
, Jean and Pras are Haiti
an, while Hill is American
. The group recorded two albums—one of which, The Score
(1996), was a multi-platinum
and Grammy-winning success—before disbanding in 1997. Hill and Jean each went on to successful solo recording careers; Michel focused on soundtrack recordings and acting, though he found commercial success with his song "Ghetto Supastar
". In 2007, MTV
ranked them the 9th greatest Hip-hop group of all time.
, in 1994 under the guidance of Kool and the Gang's producer Ronald Bell. The album spawned two underground hits, "Nappy Heads (Mona Lisa)" and "Vocab", but gained little mainstream attention, although it had an unmistakable artistic quality and a very innovative approach in the use of samples. The musical qualities of their first record would be rediscovered, after the release of their second album The Score
which appeared in early 1996.
The Score
became one of the biggest hits of 1996 and one of the best-selling hip hop albums of all time. The Fugees first gained attention for their cover version
s of old favorites, with the group's reinterpretations of "No Woman No Cry" by Bob Marley & the Wailers
and "Killing Me Softly with His Song
" (originally written by Lori Lieberman
in 1971, remade by Roberta Flack
in 1973), the latter being their biggest hit. The album also included a re-interpretation of The Delfonics
' "Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide From Love)" in their hit single, "Ready or Not
", which featured a prominent sample
of Enya
's "Boadicea" without the singer's permission. This prompted a lawsuit resulting in a settlement where Enya was given credit and royalties for her sample. The Fugees have continuously thanked and praised Enya for her deep understanding of the situation, for example in the liner notes
for The Score. The Fugees won two 1997 Grammy Awards with The Score (Best Rap Album
) and "Killing Me Softly" (Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group
).
In 1997, the Fugees all began solo projects: Hill started work on her critically acclaimed The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
; Jean began producing for a number of artists (including Canibus
, Destiny's Child
and Carlos Santana
) and recorded his debut album The Carnival
; Pras, with Mya and Ol' Dirty Bastard
, recorded the single "Ghetto Supastar" for the soundtrack to the Warren Beatty
/Halle Berry
film Bulworth
. In early 1998, they reunited to shoot a music video for the song "Just Happy to Be Me" which appeared in the Sesame Street
special Elmopalooza
, and also on the Grammy Award winning soundtrack album
.
The trio purposely took its name from a word often used derogatorily to refer to Haitian-Americans (refugee). Refugee Camp, while a name sometimes credited to the trio, also refers to a number of artists affiliated with them, and particularly Jean. John Forté
was an early member, rapping and drum programming
on two of The Scores tracks, and served a 14-year prison sentence for cocaine
trafficking until his sentence was commuted in November 2008 by George W. Bush.
featured in the film Dave Chappelle's Block Party
, headlining a star-studded bill that included Kanye West
, Mos Def
, Jill Scott
, Erykah Badu
, The Roots
, Talib Kweli
, Common
, Big Daddy Kane
, Dead Prez
, Cody ChestnuTT and John Legend
. Their performance received mostly positive reviews, many of which praised Hill's near acappella
rendition of "Killing Me Softly
".
The Fugees would make their first televised appearance in almost ten years at BET
's 2005 Music Awards on June 28, opening the show with a twelve minute set. With a new album announced to be in the works, one track, "Take It Easy", was leaked online and eventually released as an Internet single
on September 27, 2005. It peaked at #40 on the Billboard R&B Chart and was met with poor reviews, noting its radical departure from the Fugees' sound.
In 2005, the Fugees embarked on a European tour—their first together since 1997—from November 30 to December 20, playing in Finland
, Austria
, Norway
, Germany
, Italy
, France
, England
, Belgium
, Denmark
, Sweden
, Switzerland
and Slovakia
. The tour received mixed reviews. On February 6, 2006, the group reunited for a free show in Hollywood, with tickets given away to about 8,000 fans by local radio stations. Later that month, a new track called "Foxy" leaked, a song dubbed the "REAL return of the Fugees" by several online MP3
blog
s.
However, following the reunion tour, the album that was said to be in the works did not materialize and was postponed indefinitely as relationships between band members apparently deteriorated. In August 2007, Michel stated, "Before I work with Lauryn Hill again, you will have a better chance of seeing Osama Bin Laden
and [George W.] Bush
in Starbucks
having a latte
, discussing foreign policies, before there will be a Fugees reunion." Meanwhile, in September 2007 an equally-outspoken Jean told Blues & Soul
: "I feel the first issue that needs to be addressed is that Lauryn needs help... In my personal opinion, those Fugees reunion shows shouldn't have been done, because we wasn't ready. I really felt we shoulda first all gone into a room with Lauryn and a psychiatrist... But, you know, I do believe Lauryn can get help. And, once she does work things out, hopefully a proper and enduring Fugees reunion will happen."
Their debut album Blunted on Reality
did not contain as many lyrics with overtly politically messages as songs from The Score
, but even in the earliest days of the band, there were political intentions. Wyclef Jean
describes the meaning of the title of their first album in a 1990 interview on the television program Lorna’s Corner:
“when the cop is messing around with somebody for something that the person didn’t do and they try to set ‘em up, that makes me blunted on reality. When the government is taking money on arms…and that money could be going back to the community it makes me blunted on reality. It’s just awareness of what’s going on…that’s what blunted on reality means…It don’t mean that I smoke weed…cause I’m too paranoid as it is.”
The Score’s multi-platinum success allowed The Fugees to extend their activism beyond their lyrics. The group organized and performed in hip-hop charity festivals such as Harlem’s Hoodshock and used the proceeds to fund a not-for-profit summer camp for New Jersey youth. They also turned their recording studio, The Booga Basement, into a transitional house for young Haitian refugees trying to get settled in America.
After the group split, Wyclef Jean
co-founded and headed the Yele Haiti Foundation which is a non-profit organization “focusing on emergency relief, employment, youth development and education, and tree planting and agriculture” in Haiti. Pras Michel starred in a documentary about homelessness in Los Angeles and remained outspoken about Haitian politics. Lauryn Hill continued recording and performing socially conscious music and went on to advocate for female empowerment especially within the music industry.
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
group who rose to fame in the mid-1990s. Their repertoire included elements of Hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
, soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
music, particularly reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
. The members of the group were rapper/singer/producer
Hip hop production
Hip hop production is the creation of hip hop music. Though the term encompasses all aspects of hip hop music, it's most commonly used to refer to the instrumental, non-lyrical aspects of hip hop. This means that hip hop producers are the instrumentalists involved in a work...
Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Noelle Hill is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress.Early in her career, she established her reputation as a member of the Fugees. In 1998, she launched her solo career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album, The Miseducation of...
, and rapper Pras Michel
Pras
Prakazrel Samuel Michel, known as Pras, is a Grammy Award-winning Haitian-American rapper, actor, film producer, and member of the hip hop trio The Fugees.-Early life:...
. Deriving their name from the term refugee
Refugee
A refugee is a person who outside her country of origin or habitual residence because she has suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because she is a member of a persecuted 'social group'. Such a person may be referred to as an 'asylum seeker' until...
, Jean and Pras are Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an, while Hill is American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The group recorded two albums—one of which, The Score
The Score (album)
The Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide February 13, 1996 on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip hop music scene in the...
(1996), was a multi-platinum
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
and Grammy-winning success—before disbanding in 1997. Hill and Jean each went on to successful solo recording careers; Michel focused on soundtrack recordings and acting, though he found commercial success with his song "Ghetto Supastar
Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)
"Ghetto Supastar " is a Hip-Hop song by American rapper Pras, featuring rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard and recording artist Mýa. The track was produced by Wyclef Jean and Jerry 'Wonda" Duplessis for Pras' debut solo studio album, Ghetto Supastar. It also features on the soundtrack for the motion picture...
". In 2007, MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
ranked them the 9th greatest Hip-hop group of all time.
History
The trio formed in the early nineties, but changed direction and released their first hip-hop LP, Blunted on RealityBlunted on Reality
Blunted on Reality is the debut album released by hip hop group The Fugees. The album was written and recorded by the group in 1992, however, following a long dispute with their record company, the album was not released until February 1, 1994. Most versions of the album contain seventeen tracks,...
, in 1994 under the guidance of Kool and the Gang's producer Ronald Bell. The album spawned two underground hits, "Nappy Heads (Mona Lisa)" and "Vocab", but gained little mainstream attention, although it had an unmistakable artistic quality and a very innovative approach in the use of samples. The musical qualities of their first record would be rediscovered, after the release of their second album The Score
The Score (album)
The Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide February 13, 1996 on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip hop music scene in the...
which appeared in early 1996.
The Score
The Score (album)
The Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide February 13, 1996 on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip hop music scene in the...
became one of the biggest hits of 1996 and one of the best-selling hip hop albums of all time. The Fugees first gained attention for their cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s of old favorites, with the group's reinterpretations of "No Woman No Cry" by Bob Marley & the Wailers
Bob Marley & The Wailers
Bob Marley & The Wailers were a Jamaican reggae, ska and rocksteady band formed by Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer in 1963. Additional members were Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, Cherry Smith and Aston and Carlton Barrett...
and "Killing Me Softly with His Song
Killing Me Softly with His Song
"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a 1971 song composed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. It has been covered by numerous artists, most notably by Roberta Flack whose version topped the U.S...
" (originally written by Lori Lieberman
Lori Lieberman
Lori Lieberman is an American singer. She was born in California and grew up in Switzerland, and signed a deal with Capitol Records in the early 1970s. Her self-titled debut album featured the tune "Killing Me Softly with His Song", written by composers Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel after...
in 1971, remade by Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
in 1973), the latter being their biggest hit. The album also included a re-interpretation of The Delfonics
The Delfonics
The Delfonics are a pioneering Philadelphia soul singing group, most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Their most notable hits include "La-La ", "Didn't I ", "Break Your Promise," "I'm Sorry," and "Ready or Not Here I Come "...
' "Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide From Love)" in their hit single, "Ready or Not
Ready Or Not (Fugees song)
"Ready or Not" is a song by The Fugees, from their second studio album The Score . The song contains a sample of "Boadicea" by Enya, and its chorus is based on "Ready or Not Here I Come " by The Delfonics. The song spent two weeks atop the UK Singles Chart in September 1996...
", which featured a prominent sample
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
of Enya
Enya
Enya is an Irish singer, instrumentalist and songwriter. Enya is an approximate transliteration of how Eithne is pronounced in the Donegal dialect of the Irish language, her native tongue.She began her musical career in 1980, when she briefly joined her family band Clannad before leaving to...
's "Boadicea" without the singer's permission. This prompted a lawsuit resulting in a settlement where Enya was given credit and royalties for her sample. The Fugees have continuously thanked and praised Enya for her deep understanding of the situation, for example in the liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
for The Score. The Fugees won two 1997 Grammy Awards with The Score (Best Rap Album
Grammy Award for Best Rap Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards...
) and "Killing Me Softly" (Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group
Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1970 and 2011. From 1967 to 1969 and in 1971 the award included instrumental performances...
).
In 1997, the Fugees all began solo projects: Hill started work on her critically acclaimed The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the debut solo album by American musician Lauryn Hill, released August 25, 1998, on Columbia Records. Recording sessions for the album took place from late 1997 to June 1998, and were held primarily at Tuff Gong Studios in Jamaica...
; Jean began producing for a number of artists (including Canibus
Canibus
Germaine Williams , better known by his stage name Canibus, is a Jamaican-born American rapper. He is a part of supergroup The HRSMN. Canibus rose to fame in the mid-nineties...
, Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American R&B girl group whose final line-up comprised lead singer Beyoncé Knowles alongside Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. Formed in 1997 in Houston, Texas, Destiny's Child members began their musical endeavors in their pre-teens under the name Girl's Tyme...
and Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
) and recorded his debut album The Carnival
The Carnival
"The Carnival" is the debut album released by hip hop writer Wyclef Jean. Released on June 24, 1997, Jean also served as the album's executive producer. The album encompasses many musical genres, including hip hop, reggae, folk, disco, soul, Son Cubano and Haitian music...
; Pras, with Mya and Ol' Dirty Bastard
Ol' Dirty Bastard
Russell Tyrone Jones was an American rapper and occasional producer, who went by the stage name Ol' Dirty Bastard or simply ODB...
, recorded the single "Ghetto Supastar" for the soundtrack to the Warren Beatty
Warren Beatty
Warren Beatty born March 30, 1937) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter and director. He has received a total of fourteen Academy Award nominations, winning one for Best Director in 1982. He has also won four Golden Globe Awards including the Cecil B. DeMille Award.-Early life and...
/Halle Berry
Halle Berry
Halle Berry is an American actress and a former fashion model. Berry received an Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG, and an NAACP Image Award for Introducing Dorothy Dandridge and won an Academy Award for Best Actress and was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 2001 for her performance in Monster's Ball, becoming...
film Bulworth
Bulworth
Bulworth is a 1998 American film co-written, co-produced and directed by the film's star, Warren Beatty. It was loosely based on the life of Beatty's friend, Tennessee political figure John Jay Hooker. It co-stars Halle Berry, Oliver Platt, Don Cheadle, Paul Sorvino, Jack Warden, and Isaiah...
. In early 1998, they reunited to shoot a music video for the song "Just Happy to Be Me" which appeared in the Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
special Elmopalooza
Elmopalooza
Elmopalooza is a Sesame Street special that aired on ABC on February 20, 1998.-About the show:The show is a musical, featuring performances from guests Jon Stewart, David Alan Grier, Rosie O' Donnell, Gloria Estefan, En Vogue, The Fugees, Kenny Loggins, Shawn Colvin, Jimmy Buffett, and The Mighty...
, and also on the Grammy Award winning soundtrack album
Elmopalooza! (soundtrack)
Elmopalooza! is a 1998 children's album featuring songs performed by characters from Sesame Street with special musical guests. First released on CD and cassette in 1998, this album is the soundtrack to the Elmopalooza television special which commemorated Sesame Street's 30th anniversary...
.
The trio purposely took its name from a word often used derogatorily to refer to Haitian-Americans (refugee). Refugee Camp, while a name sometimes credited to the trio, also refers to a number of artists affiliated with them, and particularly Jean. John Forté
John Forté
John Forté is a Grammy-nominated American recording artist, composer, music producer, educator and activist. He achieved fame while writing, producing and performing with the celebrated hip hop group The Fugees during the 1990’s, and has released four solo albums, including his most recent effort,...
was an early member, rapping and drum programming
Drum machine
A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...
on two of The Scores tracks, and served a 14-year prison sentence for cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
trafficking until his sentence was commuted in November 2008 by George W. Bush.
Short-lived reunion
The three Fugees reunited and performed on September 18, 2004 at the concert in Bedford-Stuyvesant, BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
featured in the film Dave Chappelle's Block Party
Dave Chappelle's Block Party
A compilation of "music from and inspired by" the film was released on March 14, 2006.The album was released by Geffen Records, and produced by Corey Smyth for Blacksmith Music Corp and Questlove.#Dead Prez - "Hip Hop"#Black Star - "Definition"...
, headlining a star-studded bill that included Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
, Mos Def
Mos Def
Dante Terrell Smith is an American actor and Emcee known by the stage names Mos Def and Yasiin Bey. He started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. With Talib Kweli, he formed the duo Black Star, which...
, Jill Scott
Jill Scott
Jill Scott is an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter, poet, and actress. In 2007, Scott made her cinematic debut in the films Hounddog and in Tyler Perry's feature film, Why Did I Get Married? That year, her third studio album, The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3, was released on...
, Erykah Badu
Erykah Badu
Erica Abi Wright , better known by her stage name Erykah Badu , is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Her work includes elements from R&B, hip hop and jazz. She is best known for her role in the rise of the neo soul sub-genre, and for her eccentric, cerebral musical...
, The Roots
The Roots
The Roots is an American hip hop/neo soul band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals...
, Talib Kweli
Talib Kweli
Talib Kweli Greene , better known as Talib Kweli, is an American hip-hop artist and poet from Brooklyn, New York. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker" ; his in Swahili means "true"...
, Common
Common (rapper)
Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. , better known by his stage name Common , is an American hip-hop artist and actor....
, Big Daddy Kane
Big Daddy Kane
Antonio Hardy better known by his stage name Big Daddy Kane, is an American rapper who started his career in 1986 as a member of the rap group the Juice Crew. He is widely considered to be one of the most influential and skilled MC's in Hip Hop...
, Dead Prez
Dead Prez
Dead Prez stylized as dead prez is a hip hop duo from the United States, composed of stic.man and M-1, formed in 1996 in New York City, New York. They are known for their confrontational style, combined with socialist lyrics focused on both militant social justice and Pan-Africanism...
, Cody ChestnuTT and John Legend
John Legend
John Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...
. Their performance received mostly positive reviews, many of which praised Hill's near acappella
Acappella
Acappella may refer to:* Acapella , by Johnny Maestro & The Brooklyn Bridge* Acappella...
rendition of "Killing Me Softly
Killing Me Softly with His Song
"Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a 1971 song composed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. It has been covered by numerous artists, most notably by Roberta Flack whose version topped the U.S...
".
The Fugees would make their first televised appearance in almost ten years at BET
Black Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
's 2005 Music Awards on June 28, opening the show with a twelve minute set. With a new album announced to be in the works, one track, "Take It Easy", was leaked online and eventually released as an Internet single
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
on September 27, 2005. It peaked at #40 on the Billboard R&B Chart and was met with poor reviews, noting its radical departure from the Fugees' sound.
In 2005, the Fugees embarked on a European tour—their first together since 1997—from November 30 to December 20, playing in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
. The tour received mixed reviews. On February 6, 2006, the group reunited for a free show in Hollywood, with tickets given away to about 8,000 fans by local radio stations. Later that month, a new track called "Foxy" leaked, a song dubbed the "REAL return of the Fugees" by several online MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
s.
However, following the reunion tour, the album that was said to be in the works did not materialize and was postponed indefinitely as relationships between band members apparently deteriorated. In August 2007, Michel stated, "Before I work with Lauryn Hill again, you will have a better chance of seeing Osama Bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
and [George W.] Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
in Starbucks
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
having a latte
Latte
A latte is a coffee drink made with espresso and steamed milk. Variants include replacing the coffee with another drink base such as masala chai, mate or matcha...
, discussing foreign policies, before there will be a Fugees reunion." Meanwhile, in September 2007 an equally-outspoken Jean told Blues & Soul
Blues & Soul
Blues & Soul is a British music magazine covering black music. Genres covered include soul, R&B, jazz, hip hop, reggae and world music. It was first published in 1966 and is known for first using the term Northern Soul....
: "I feel the first issue that needs to be addressed is that Lauryn needs help... In my personal opinion, those Fugees reunion shows shouldn't have been done, because we wasn't ready. I really felt we shoulda first all gone into a room with Lauryn and a psychiatrist... But, you know, I do believe Lauryn can get help. And, once she does work things out, hopefully a proper and enduring Fugees reunion will happen."
Social Activism
The concept of black empowerment has been a central part of The Fugees' message since their inception. Band members, collectively and individually, have often used their song lyrics and extra-musical activities to advocate for social change.Their debut album Blunted on Reality
Blunted on Reality
Blunted on Reality is the debut album released by hip hop group The Fugees. The album was written and recorded by the group in 1992, however, following a long dispute with their record company, the album was not released until February 1, 1994. Most versions of the album contain seventeen tracks,...
did not contain as many lyrics with overtly politically messages as songs from The Score
The Score
The Score may refer to:* The Score Magazine, a Chennai magazine* The Score Television Network, a Canadian sports channel* The Score , a 1996 album by Fugees* The Score – An Epic Journey, a 2005 album by the symphonic metal band Epica...
, but even in the earliest days of the band, there were political intentions. Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
describes the meaning of the title of their first album in a 1990 interview on the television program Lorna’s Corner:
“when the cop is messing around with somebody for something that the person didn’t do and they try to set ‘em up, that makes me blunted on reality. When the government is taking money on arms…and that money could be going back to the community it makes me blunted on reality. It’s just awareness of what’s going on…that’s what blunted on reality means…It don’t mean that I smoke weed…cause I’m too paranoid as it is.”
The Score’s multi-platinum success allowed The Fugees to extend their activism beyond their lyrics. The group organized and performed in hip-hop charity festivals such as Harlem’s Hoodshock and used the proceeds to fund a not-for-profit summer camp for New Jersey youth. They also turned their recording studio, The Booga Basement, into a transitional house for young Haitian refugees trying to get settled in America.
After the group split, Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
co-founded and headed the Yele Haiti Foundation which is a non-profit organization “focusing on emergency relief, employment, youth development and education, and tree planting and agriculture” in Haiti. Pras Michel starred in a documentary about homelessness in Los Angeles and remained outspoken about Haitian politics. Lauryn Hill continued recording and performing socially conscious music and went on to advocate for female empowerment especially within the music industry.
Studio albums
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | Certifications | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
UK UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
CAN Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
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| 1994 | Blunted on Reality Blunted on Reality Blunted on Reality is the debut album released by hip hop group The Fugees. The album was written and recorded by the group in 1992, however, following a long dispute with their record company, the album was not released until February 1, 1994. Most versions of the album contain seventeen tracks,...
|
— | 62 | — | — | |
| 1996 | The Score The Score (album) The Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide February 13, 1996 on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip hop music scene in the... Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... , CS Compact Cassette The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel... , MD Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... |
1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... : 6× Platinum British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... : 4× Platinum Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada... : 5× Platinum |
Compilation albums
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | Certifications | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
UK UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
CAN Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
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| 2003 | Greatest Hits
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— | — | — | — |
Other albums
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US R&B Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
UK UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
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| 1996 | Bootleg Versions
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127 | 50 | 55 |
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US R&B Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
US Rap Hot Rap Tracks Rap Songs is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stations and sales in hip hop-focused or exclusive markets. From 1989 through 2001, it was based on how much the single... |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
CAN Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
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| 1993 | "Boof Baf" | — | — | — | — | — | Blunted on Reality | |
| 1994 | "Nappy Heads (Remix)" | 49 | 52 | 12 | 172 | — | ||
| "Vocab" | 108A | 91 | 22 | — | — | |||
| 1996 | "Fu-Gee-La Fu-Gee-La "Fu-Gee-La" is the first single from the Fugees' second album, The Score. The song, which was produced by Salaam Remi, contains a sample of "If Loving You Is Wrong, I Don't Want To Be Right" by Ramsey Lewis, and its chorus is based on "Ooo La La La" by Teena Marie... " |
29 | 13 | 2 | 21 | — |
|
The Score |
| "Killing Me Softly"B | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 6 |
|
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| "Ready or Not"B | 69 | 22 | — | 1 | — |
|
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| "No Woman, No Cry No Woman, No Cry "No Woman, No Cry" is a reggae song by Bob Marley & The Wailers. The song first became known in 1974 through the studio album Natty Dread. The live version from the 1975 album Live! is perhaps best known — it was this version which was released on the greatest hits compilation Legend. The original... "B (with Stephen Marley Stephen Marley (musician) Stephen Robert Nesta "Raggamuffin" Marley is a Jamaican American musician and the son of reggae legend Bob Marley and his wife Rita Marley. He is a five-time Grammy award winner as an artist, producer, and member of Ziggy Marley & The Melody Makers.-Life and career:Marley was born in Wilmington,... ) |
38 | 58 | — | 2 | — | |||
| 1997 | "Rumble in the Jungle"B (feat. A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006... , Busta Rhymes Busta Rhymes Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes... & John Forté John Forté John Forté is a Grammy-nominated American recording artist, composer, music producer, educator and activist. He achieved fame while writing, producing and performing with the celebrated hip hop group The Fugees during the 1990’s, and has released four solo albums, including his most recent effort,... ) |
— | 71 | 3 | 3 | — | When We Were Kings OST When We Were Kings When We Were Kings is a 1996 documentary film directed by Leon Gast about the famous Rumble in the Jungle heavyweight championship match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. The fight was held in Zaire on October 30, 1974.The film features a number of celebrities, including James Brown, Jim... |
|
| 2005 | "Take It Easy" | 119A | 40 | — | — | — | Non-album single |
As a featured guest
| Year | Song | Chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
U.S. R&B Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
U.S. Rap Hot Rap Tracks Rap Songs is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stations and sales in hip hop-focused or exclusive markets. From 1989 through 2001, it was based on how much the single... |
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| 1997 | "Hip-Hopera" (Bounty Killer Bounty Killer Bounty Killer is a Grammy nominated Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay. He is the founder of a dancehall collective known as The Alliance.-Early life and career:... feat. Fugees) |
81 | 54 | 14 | My Xperience My Xperience My Xperience is a reggae album by Jamaican dancehall performer Bounty Killer, released in 1996 . Bounty Killer was one of dancehall's biggest stars in the 1990s and his harsh hip hop-influenced songs made him a controversial figure... |
- A Peaked on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 SinglesBubbling Under Hot 100 SinglesThe Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It lists the top 25 singles below number 100 that have not yet charted on the Billboard Hot 100. Sometimes, however, singles halt their progress on this chart, and never appear on the Hot 100...
chart. - B Did not chart on the Hot 100 or Hot R&B/Hip-Hop charts (Billboard rules at the time prevented album cuts from charting). Chart peak listed here represents Hot 100 AirplayHot 100 AirplayThe Hot 100 Airplay chart is a chart released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It measures radio airplay, and is one of the three component charts, along with the Hot Singles Sales and the Hot Digital Songs charts, that determine the chart positions of singles on the Billboard...
and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop AirplayHot R&B/Hip-Hop AirplayThe Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart is the airplay component chart of the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. It is not the R&B subset of The Hot 100 Airplay, but rather a separate panel of R&B stations in urban markets used for the R&B/Hip-Hop chart...
charts data.
External links
- Official Fugees Website
- Fugees at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- www.the-fugees-official.skyblog.com