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Lauryn Hill Folk artist, and record producer, initially establishing her reputation as the most visible and vocal member of The Fugees, then continued on to a solo career releasing . She soon denounced her fame and began writing more spiritually and socially conscious songs.

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Lauryn Hill attended Columbia High School in Maplewood, NJ, where she began singing and acting at a very young age. Hill's acting roles included the TV show , the latter of which showcased her vocal abilities. Though the Fugees had originally formed in 1988, Hill's membership was disrupted by her acting and her education at Columbia University. The Fugees' first album, , a multi-platinum selling album that established all three Fugees (Hill, Pras Michel and Wyclef Jean) as international successes.

She has an incredibly acrobatic and soulful voice, which was clearly demonstrated in her rendition of "Joyful, Joyful" in Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit.

Hill's other acting work includes the film , a critically and commercially acclaimed album. The first, and biggest, single off the album was "Doo Wop (That Thing)", which went to number one in the summer of 1998. In 1999's Grammy Awards, Hill was nominated eleven times and won Album of the Year (beating Madonna (entertainer)'s critically acclaimed album Ray of Light), Best New Artist, Best Female RB Album, setting a new record for a female performer. The album's title was inspired by Carter G. Woodson's book, . Much of its lyrical content seems to have been inspired by her tumultuous affair with Fugees member Wyclef Jean--an affair which continued after Jean married and then ended bitterly, prompting the Fugees' break-up.

Soon after the album became a success, Hill and her recording company were sued by Vada Nobles, Rasheem Pugh, Johari Newton and Tejumold Newton, known as "New Ark Entertainment," who claimed to have been denied full credit and compensation for their assistance on the album. They received an undisclosed amount of money and were given credit for drum programming and a small amount of lyrical, instrumental and production work.

In the months and years after the release of her debut album, Hill began to become increasingly dissatisfied with the music industry. In the February 2006 issue of Essence Magazine, Hill speaks about this time in her life: "For two or three years I was away from all social interaction. It was a very introspective time because I had to confront my fears and master every demonic thought about inferiority, about insecurity or the fear of being black, young and gifted in this western culture. It took a considerable amount of courage, faith and risk to gain the confidence to be myself." During this time, she ceased to be a public figure and refused interviews. She stopped watching television and listening to music completely. She began exploring alternate methods of expressing herself, including writing screenplays and designing clothing. However, she chose to scrap her fashion line because she believed that others might try to exploit her designs.

special, performing with Japanese artists CHEMISTRY and Hirai Ken. Fans had waited three long years for Hill's follow-up to the critical and commercial smash hit, . Those fans who were chosen to be audience members for the MTV filming had high expectations of the former Fugees frontwoman. What they got was a stripped-down performance by an almost unrecognizable Hill, who had recently cut off her hair and wore plain clothing. The album showed a different side of Hill, as she focused more on the lyrics and the message she was spreading rather than the musical arrangements. “Fantasy is what people want, but reality is what they need,” she was heard to say during the concert. “I’ve just retired from the fantasy part.”

Most of the songs featured only nylon string guitar and voice. Hill used the set as an opportunity to explain why she had been absent from the world for a period of time. The album was released to mixed reviews. While some critics praised Hill's bold new direction, others called the album's songs "unlistenable".

Hill is noted as a humanitarian, and in 1996 she received an Essence Award for work which has included the 1996 founding of the Refugee Project, an outreach organization that supports a two-week overnight camp for at-risk youth, and for supporting well-building projects in Kenya and Uganda, as well as for staging a rap concert in Harlem to promote voter registration. In 1999 Hill received three awards at the 30th Annual NAACP Image Awards held at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in California. She was named with Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. and others among the "10 For Tomorrow," in the magazine named her one of "100+ Most Influential Black Americans."

On December 13, 2003, Hill shocked officials at the Vatican by denouncing "corruption, exploitation, and abuses," in reference to the child molestation of boys by Catholic officials in the United States of America and the cover-up of offenses by Catholic Church officials. Among those in attendance were Edmund Cardinal Szoka, American-born President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City, and President of the Governatorate of Vatican City. Two days later Pope John Paul II told a group of Bishops from Sudan that, "Scandalous behavior must at all times be investigated, confronted and corrected" in the Catholic Church.

The three Fugees were reunited on September 18, 2004 at Dave Chappelle's Block Party in Brooklyn, New York. They headlined a bill that included a star-studded cast of hip hop celebrities, including Kanye West, Common, Mos Def, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott and others. The Fugees also appeared at BET's 2005 Music Awards on June 28, 2005.

A new album is supposedly in the works. One track, "Take It Easy", was leaked online and eventually released as a single on the internet on September 27, 2005. It peaked at #14 on the Billboard RB Charts.

The Fugees embarked on a European tour from November 30, 2005 through December 20, 2005. The group played Austria, Finland, Norway, Germany, Belgium, Italy, France, England and Switzerland.

Hill has four children with retired (American) football player Rohan Marley, son of the late reggae music icon, Bob Marley: Zion David Marley, born 1997, Selah Louise Marley, born 1998, and second son Joshua, born 2002. A fourth child, John, was born in 2003 and the couple married soon after.

Ms. Hill is reportedly working on her own LP, and completing it little by little. In January 2005, she had collaborated with producer extraordinaire Kanye West to produce at least two songs. John Legend has also commented about doing a song with her for her upcoming LP. She was supposedly wrapping a project titled "Khulami Phase" over a year ago (as of 102005) but that seems to have dissipated into nothing. Also, recent performances hint toward a possible return into a solo music career.