Lauryn Hill the goddess top 25 songs (stillmatic version)

[stillmatic]

#13
Final hour

One of Lauryn's most raw pure rap songs, where she technically is at her best and fires through her own (she produced all her own beats on her album), and she again sounds like a vicious female version of Nas. The wordplay, the multis, the pure message of her lyrics is perfect.

[stillmatic]

#12
Superstar

(Another) great positive Lauryn song. Amazing how it's more than 10 years a go, and she's talking about the lack of meaning in hip hop and the state of the music in the future, and how it needs to be treated better. Some people thought this was shots at certain artists, but I don't think so, it's just talking about the industry in general. The beauty here is Lauryn isn't coming off as provocative, but rather as a teacher. BUT she does not back down, when she starts rapping, she lets it be known she can hold her known.

[stillmatic]

#11
Ex Factor

Another one of Lauryn's biggest hits from her album, again like her entire album, 'the beauty of the album lies in her ability to make her self-righteousness more than tolerable'...sort of the way we've welcomed Eminem's personal stories for such a long time. The success behind this song is because people connected with her story, it's got such a human effect, like almost all of her songs. The song is partially directed at Wyclef Jean's treatment of her when they were dating (for those who don't know, Wyclef impregnated another woman whilst with Lauryn).

[stillmatic]

#10
Mystery of Inquity


Another one of Lauryn's big hits, it was nominated for a grammy without any airplay (no official release) or promotion (as per her wishes). For Kanye West fans, the song will be known as this song was used as an interpolation for his song "All Falls Down', however the hook for that song was not Lauryn Hill. The song represents so much of what Lauryn's unplugged CD was about, and it was clearly the best song from the album.

[stillmatic]

#9
Turn Your Lights Down Low (ft. Bob Marley)

The legendary Bob Marley originally recorded this song in his 1977 album. Lauryn hill covered the song in 1999 as a duet for the Bob Marley covered album in 1999 'Chant Down Babylon'. The song was released as the single from the album and was a big hit, and it's only fitting Lauryn was apart of it. The influence on Bob Marley's music in Lauryn's style is huge, her music is almost a continuation of the legacy of Bob Marley. Lauryn Hill has also been in a relationship with Rohan Marley (Bob's 4th child) and they have 2 children together. The song is simply an ode to peace, so turn your lights down low to one of the greatest duets in history between Lauryn and her father-in-law.

[stillmatic]

#8
Forgive them father

The influence of Marley's music is huge in Lauryn's, and Lauryn recorded the majority of her album in Jamaica in the same studio that Bob Marley used, and during her recording, a lot of the Marley family were present. "Using a rhythmic snippet of Marley's ''Concrete Jungle,'' ''Forgive Them Father'' sways with island-lilt harmonies" into a beautiful mellow song that again combines singing with rap. One of her most critically acclaimed songs.

[stillmatic]

#7
How many mics (ft. The Fugees)

One of the typical rap songs where the artists boast about how much they are better than other rappers, but these type of songs hold more ground when the artist is pretty much the best in the game. Lauryn's words pain a picture, and her flow is almost Biggie like as it bounces with the dark beat. One of her best ever pure rap songs.

[stillmatic]

#6
To Zion

Just a quick note, because you won't believe how many people misunderstand this. The "Zion" Lauryn is referring to is NOT about the Biblical land of Israel or the political movement of "Zionism". Lauryn's Zion refers to the view of it in the Rastafari movement, that is "Zion" stands for a Utopian place of unity, peace and freedom, as opposed to "Babylon", the oppressing and exploiting system of the western world and a place of evil. So now the song will make more sense to you. To Zion" speaks about her decision to have her first baby, even though many at the time encouraged her to abort the pregnancy so as to not interfere with her blossoming career. Masterpiece.

[stillmatic]

Forgot to paste the finished version here, sorry.

#5
If I Ruled the world (ft. Nas)

This song is my favourite track that Lauryn is in, but it's only #5 only because she doesn't really have verse here, just the hook and the bridge. This is Lauryn Hill and Nas, 'nuff said, this is a pure classic track that will be remembered for as long music exists. This was the first time I actually heard Lauryn, I remember I was 8 years old, and growing up in Queens, when Nas released a song, we would listen in awe, and as great as Nas' verses here are, Lauryn's ridiculously elegant contribution steals the show. Believe it.

[stillmatic]

#4
Killing me softly (ft. The Fugees)


This song is from The Fugees album, but Lauryn goes solo on this Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel covered song. This is arguably Lauryn's biggest hit, it won her a grammy and this song put her amongst the elite in the music industry, this was THE song where everyone recognized she was a problem, where she showcased her amazing singing abilities and made the track a worldwide hit, and to this day it still gets constant rotation. One of the greatest songs ever recorded.

[stillmatic]

#3
Fu-gee-la (ft. The Fugees)

Oooh La La La, It's the way that we rock when we're doing our thang/ Oooh La La La, It's the natural LA that the Refugees Bring/ Oooh La La La La La La Lalala La Laaah, Sweeeeet Thing Which other rapper could ever deliver such a powerful verse that covers everything that a great verse should contain, but then also deliver such a menacingly catchy hook with elegance? Not many. Lauryn is one though, and she showcases here why she will always be apart of the great Hip Hop culture, forever. The song was a worldwide hit, and was so huge that it sparked three remixes in the album (which included some new Lauryn verses). Invincible Lauryn.

[NicoleEM]

She was great no contest.Curious what she's gonna get outhere.I think i saw somewhere that all 3 plan to get solo albums this year and/or in 2012.Tho i'm sure they will never reach the fame they achieved with The fugees,they were amazing.Killing me softly ,No woman no cry,Ready or not and If i ruled the world are on my fav list

[stillmatic]

#2
Lost Ones

There's some songs that become more and more relevant as time passes, starting from early as KRS One's 'My philosophy", and this is Lauryn's major contribution to that class. "Messianic, finger-pointing raps in ''Lost Ones'' give way to fluidly sung choruses" which puts Lauryn in a class of her own, where no female MC (certainly no Barbie) will ever be able to match. This song is a memo about her dominance in rap where she gets it and staples it on your head. Also such a very relevant track to the fake artists that will come to the industry in the future, and this couldn't be more relevant than in 2010. This is Hip Hop.

[stillmatic]

#1
Ready or not (ft. The Fugees)

Lauryn plays her enemies like a game of chess here, and it makes it her greatest song ever. From the hypnotic and soft beat to Lauryn's hook which contains a funky, grunting groove all the way down to her mesmerizing verse. She is ridiculous.

[stillmatic]

"The potency of that personality can't be underestimated. Women may have made major gains in pop and rock, but the worlds of R&B and hip-hop remain very much boys' clubs. They're mostly populated with lustrously packaged divas guided at every turn by male label heads and producers. The music is as exquisitely manicured as high-cost nails but deeply impersonal". The majority of females in music use shock, sex, drama, publicity, gimmicks, unoriginal styles, modeling, biting, cosigns, big name producers, heavy marketing etc. to become successful. Lauryn did none of that. Her music was her own, she produced it herself, she never used sex to appeal to the audience, she never marketed it, she did her own way with intelligent rhymes and a positive message that would resonate with her people, irrelevant of what others would think. Know what it got her? Her only solo album sold ~20 million, won the most grammys for a female in one night and a legacy that will live on forever. Proof that good music and a genuine personality is still the best ability and characteristic to have. Nothing beats talent.

You can be convinced certain "buzzin" artists are talented now, but give it time and you'll realize they're nothing but gimmicks. Whereas Lauryn, like fine wine gets better with time. Lauryn is not just the best female MC of all time, saying that is almost an insult, because she's in reality competing for top 5 dead or alive of all time, regardless of gender.