Lauryn Hill defends being constantly late to shows
The Grammy Award winner says her fans are "lucky" that she even shows up...
Lauryn Hill is notoriously late to her own concerts but the music icon is seemingly unfazed by people's criticism about her tardiness.
The 48-year-old is currently on tour to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her critically acclaimed album, 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill'. Her band, the Fugees, are also part of the tour.
The eight-time Grammy Award winner decided to address her tardiness during a recent stop in Los Angeles.
"They say, 'She's late. She's late a lot.' Y'all lucky I make it on this blood ras stage every night," she said in a video shared by VIBE magazine's R&B reporter Mya Abraham on X (formerly Twitter).
Lauryn added: "I don’t do it because they let me do it. I do it because I stand here in the name of God and I do it. God is the one who allows me to do it, who surrounded me with family and community when there was no support, when the album sold so many records and no one showed up and said, ‘Hey, would you like to make another one?’”
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Lauryn Hill addresses her “lateness”
— mya. (@myabriabe) November 5, 2023
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“Yo, y’all lucky I make it on this stage every night!” pic.twitter.com/ieulUzn8Bp
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Mya shared a longer clip from the show on her TikTok page.
In it, Lauryn pays tribute to her mother Valerie who celebrated her birthday on the night. She praised her mother for raising her right. She also thanked her mother for being her "rock".
"Without her none of this would be possible... not only did she give me life but she raised me right and it wasn't easy raising either," the Hip-Hop star joked.
Her mother and some of her children joined Lauryn onstage during her heartfelt speech, which received wild applause from concertgoers.
@myabriabe #LaurynHill’s full speech honoring her mother, Valerie’s #birthday, the sacrifices her morher made for her career as Hill also addresses her lateness, her sole studio album, and later, she sings #happybirthday ♬ original sound - mya bri abe.
But not everyone is pleased with Lauryn's impassioned speech. Some say there is no excuse for being late to your own shows.
"Just be grateful and appreciative that people are still coming to your shows, to listen to your one album you made 25 years ago... What kina nonsense!!" one X user wrote.
Another added: "Not these people cheering while she disrespects them."
American talk show host, Sherri Shepherd, also expressed disappointment.
"Lauryn, people love you so much. They spend their hard-earned money. They move their lives around to come and see you. People gotta get babysitters. They buy a new outfit to come and see you, girl. To say, 'Y'all should be glad I show up at all', it's disrespectful to your fans," she said.
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Main image credit: YouTube/Ms. Lauryn Hill ('Ex-Factor' music video)