"I challenged the norm and introduced a new standard."
Mer än 20 år efter dess release har “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” nu nått diamantstatus. The Recording Industry Association of America, RIAA, gick inatt ut med nyheten att albumet alltså sålt fler än 10 000 000 enheter sedan det släpptes 1998. En milstolpe som är extra imponerande med tanke på hur streaming förändrat skivförsäljningen.
Ms. Lauryn Hill gör nu sällskap med en exklusiv skara artister som skapat diamantcertifierade album. Där återfinns bland andra Michael Jackson med “Thriller”, Eminem med “The Marshall Mathers LP” och 2Pac med “All Eyez One Me”.
“The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” var en succé redan när den släpptes, då albumet debuterade på Billboards förstaplats med mer än 422 000 album sålda under första veckan. Det belönade henne även med tio Grammy-nomineringar och fem vinster – däribland Album of the Year, Best R&B Album och Best Female R&B Vocal Performance för “Doo Wop (That Thing)”.
Förklarligt nog trodde många att albumet markerade starten på en makalös karriär, men den nu 45-åriga sångerskan släppte aldrig en uppföljare. I en intervju med “Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Album”-podcast pratade hon nyligen om beslutet:
“The wild thing is no one from my label has ever called me and asked how can we help you make another album, EVER…EVER. Did I say ever? Ever! With The Miseducation, there was no precedent. I was, for the most part, free to explore, experiment, and express. After The Miseducation, there were scores of tentacled obstructionists, politics, repressing agendas, unrealistic expectations, and saboteurs EVERYWHERE. People had included me in their own narratives of their successes as it pertained to my album, and if this contradicted my experience, I was considered an enemy.”
Hon fortsatte:
“I think my intention was simply to make something that made my foremothers and forefathers in music and social and political struggle know that someone received what they’d sacrificed to give us, and to let my peers know that we could walk in that truth, proudly and confidently. At that time, I felt like it was a duty or responsibility to do so. … I challenged the norm and introduced a new standard. I believe The Miseducation did that and I believe I still do this—defy convention when the convention is questionable.”
Welcome to the RIAA Diamond Club @MsLaurynHill! #TheMiseducationofLaurynHill is now a ? (10X) certified album! @ColumbiaRecords #BlackHistoryMonth #RIAATopCertified pic.twitter.com/mWWByv74kp
— RIAA (@RIAA) February 17, 2021
Foto: Nima Shams / Woolrich
