by Malia Esposito 

Music is the best thing in the world. I believe music shapes who we are as people. It connects us to our personalities and inner feelings. Music also helps people connect to their moods. There’s only a small number of people who don’t have a favorite music genre or artist, but I think those people haven’t discovered a connection to a style they like. I love R&B music and artists like Lauryn Hill. Not only do I love her music and voice, but I feel a connection to her poetry. She speaks for the youth and women in the music industry.

Hill was one of the first female R&B singers to win best R&B album. I remember the day my mom introduced me to her music at thirteen. I had no idea how much she impacted and changed my mood in many scenarios. By listening to the artist I love I feel calm and feeling good again. Lauryn Hill first became an icon with her works with the Fugees in the album The Score. The group rose to fame with their album The score and was one of the best selling albums of the 90s. The album has seventeen songs, my favorite being a cover of Bob Marley & The Wailers No Woman, No Cry. Another great song from the album is Zealots.

After Lauryn Hill left the Fugees, she became an independent artist and created her only album in 1999, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. The album has a neo soul and reggae feel where she raps about the woman’s view on love and God. The album tells a story of her younger self growing up and falling in and out of love. Shortly after her album hit the charts, she became a mother and resigned her music career. Overall, Lauryn Hill is the best female R&B singer of the century and her music continues to inspire me everyday.