The first-ever Diaspora Calling! was held in Milton Keys, England on Aug. 7
Credit: Calder Taylor
NEED TO KNOW
- Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean celebrated 30 years of The Fugees’ album The Score at Diaspora Calling! in England
- The festival featured performances of Fugees hits, solo songs by Hill and Jean, and a duet with Erykah Badu
- Hill and Jean recently hinted at making music together again after reuniting and healing as bandmates following their 2003 hiatus
Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean are throwing it back to the ‘90s.
On Friday, Aug. 7, Hill, 51, and Jean, 56, reunited at the first-ever Diaspora Calling! in Milton Keynes, England and celebrated the 30th anniversary of The Fugees‘ album The Score by performing “Ready or Not” and “Fu-Gee-La.”
Hill and Jean also performed some of their solo work at the music and arts festival, which is curated by Hill and hosted by Dave Chappelle. Jean performed “911,” and Hill performed “Ex-Factor” and “To Zion.” She was also joined by Erykah Badu for a performance of “Doo Wop (That Thing).”
YG Marley and Zion Marley —whose parents are Hill and Rohan Marley — also joined Hill and Jean onstage at the festival, which first launched in Brooklyn, New York, in 2016.
(Third Fugees member Pras Michel was unable to attend as he is currently serving a 14-year federal prison sentence for conspiracy, concealment of material facts and witness tampering.)
“When we started, this was the mission from the beginning,” Hill told the audience, according to a release. “Sometimes you get off the path a little bit, but you have to reclaim that and get back on it. That was a big deal for us. I grew up with heroes who did that for me.”
The Fugees released The Score in 1996 and won two Grammy Awards for the record, including Best Rap Album and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
Credit: Calder Taylor
Hill and Jean spoke with the BBC ahead of the concert and said they were “in an amazing place.”
When asked if they would ever make music together again — after The Fugees went on hiatus in 2003 — Hill said “absolutely.”
“There was an incredible healing process that happened with us as a band and as bandmates, and as you said we just want to showcase that and give some of that energy to the world as well,” she said.
Hill and Jean last reunited for a performance at the 2024 BET Awards, where they performed “Fu-Gee-La” and closed out the ceremony.
Read the full article here
