Compositions & Coffee Presents: "Creative Soul Digest"
It’s A Vibe
Hello dear friends and family welcome to Friday! Another week down and we are going to turn up by groovvin into the weekend with some Neo-Soul. Fugee’s, Miseducation of Lauryn Hill and H.E.R. what better way to set off the weekend right? I know you already started humming some songs so let’s go…
The Fugues
Their second album, The Score in 1996, was there breakout hit with songs like Killing Me Softly, Ready or Not, and their rendition of No Woman, No Cry. Their songs were politically charged, their beat was fresh, and Ms. Hill was doing something never done before…spoken word with powerhouse vocals. The group won a Grammy in 1997 for Best Rap Album and Best Vocal Performance. However, they disbanded in 97 and did solo careers but their songs will never be forgotten.
Ready or Not- The music video for Ready or Not definetly gave us something new and set the stage for theatrical movie-like music videos.
Killing Me Softly- This song had everyone memorizing and singing the lyrics. The true desire and passion behind falling for someone and how that love makes you feel was perfectly captured. If you didn’t know the background behind Ms. Hill and Wyclef go look it up but you definetly got a wiff of their relationship here…
No Woman No Cry- Let me just say the original can’t be touched BUT this song comes in as a solid second. The fresh beat they added to make you bob your head is dope.
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
Only 1 album, that’s it, that’s all it took to put this woman in a whole other stratosphere. You know she put her heart and soul into these songs and you can feel it especially the heart breakers. Every song on the album was fire. Okay here are the facts though because... ya…not enough words to describe this album:
· The title was based on The Mis-education of the Negro by Carter G. Woodson and The
Education of Sonny Carson
· She’s the first woman to be nominated in 10 categories for a Grammy and took home 5 of them
including: Best Album of the Year, Best R&B Album, Best R&B Song, Best R&B Vocal
Performance, and Best New Artist
· In 1999 she received 4 awards at the 30th Annual NAACP Image Award
· She is the youngest woman on Ebony’s Magazine 100 Most Influential Black American’s List
This list of bangers from Ms. Hill are extensive but here they are:
· Ex Factor (everyone’s anthem for break ups or toxic relationships and a possible insight into her
relationship with Wyclef and Marley)
· Doo Wop (this song just broke barriers no intro needed)
· Lost Ones (Perfect way of depicting the ups and downs of life also her raps are fire)
· Everything is Everything (I love this song as an anthem to stay positive and keep going)
· Can’t Take My Eyes of You (again no intro needed just a beautiful love song)
· To Zion (this dedication to her son was magnificent)
· Tell Him (the jam about being vulnerable )
H.E.R.
So many artist have compared this young, gifted, powerhouse to Ms. Lauryn Hill for her iconic sound, versatility, and her amazing bars. Perhaps it’s because she was born in 1997 when her album dropped. Either way she has become a dynamic artist in her own right and has taken up the mantle left behind by Ms. Hill. Her early career began with covering Alica Keys on piano on the Today Show. The acronym H.E.R. stands for Having Everything Revealed which she has stated is, “Is a metaphor for who I am, or who I was at the time of creating the project…I feel like oftentimes we don’t like to be open as people about our emotions or things that we are going through. At the time, I was very closed off except for when I was writing or when I was in the studio. She goes on to say, “I’m a voice for women who feel like they’re alone in these situations. This project came from emotion, and that’s what I want it to be about – not what I look like or who I’m with, but the raw emotion and support for women.”
She definetly is accomplishing that for women of all ages just as Ms. Hill did before her. She’s infectious and her music is so diverse which is why everyone wants to collaborate with her.
Here are the songs that I can’t stop playing:
H.E.R.- The entire debut album is AMAZING not 1 song misses a beat. It’s truly love letters written in song.
Lost Souls- truly makes me think of Lost One’s from The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. You get to hear her spit bars not to mention everything she’s speaks about from relationships to loving yourself, and social issues is on point
I had to go back and listen to all of these songs as I typed this up for y’all because it just gives me FEEELS!!! I hope it gives you the same feels. This concludes this weeks Black History Month but we have much more coming next week. Check out the recommendations below and be back here on Monday to close out the month. Always feel free to share in the comments I’d love to hear from you. Have a great weekend and as always remember to…
--Be Free
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