Lauryn Hill booed at London gig, some even went as far as calling her performance “utter shi-.” The “Doo Wop (That Thing)” singer opens a 5-night UK tour at the O2 Brixton Academy on Saturday, crowd is displeased with the showing and drama ensues.
Lauryn Hill booed, became a trending topic on social media websites in the past 24 hours. Hill, 39, started her short tour in England with complaints from fans and negative reviews by music critics. Where did the artist go wrong?
Hill got booed because she showed up on stage more than one hour late without even the slightest of apology. Miss Hill was supposed to start her concert at 9pm, instead, she first appeared at 10.30pm. The former Fugees vocalist’s own DJ was confused by the change in schedule, he tried his best via a mixture of dancehall and reggae to keep the crowd entertain, without much success.
When the mother of six finally started her set, people in the audience were disappointed that she opted to change the arrangements of some of her biggest hits. Fans had trouble at time recognizing some of the songs being performed.
Supporters of Hill paid between 80 and 150 USD, hoping to hear the tracks that made her solo album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill a classic. They would have been happy with what was featured on Fugees’ 1996’s Grammy Award-winning release The Score. Instead, they got a more experimental sound that was closer to rap-metal than the brand of Neo soul that made Hill, the most important female voice in black music, close to two decades ago.
Audience members also complained about the sound in the venue, which was particularly loud that night. All those complaints made for a very disappointing experience. Some people started leaving the Academy after few songs, although contrary to reports the “Everything Is Everything” singer was not booed off stage.
Few commentators did enjoy the show and believe that an artist should be allowed to evolve and experiment musically. Those fans say that a concert should not be like an album, it’s a very different kind of experience. Additionally, Hill has been doing the same thing on stage for years, it is hard to understand why some are surprised, they explain.
Check some of the responses the Lauryn concert got on Twitter below. Lauryn Hill booed in London, has the possibility to redeem herself when she performs at the O2 Academy Birmingham on Tuesday.
I paid £50 a ticket for a DJ that asked which part of USA the audience were from (we're in London) & an hour (or less) set from #LaurynHill
— Dee (@doodah_8) September 20, 2014
Think I've just witnessed the worst version of 'Everything is everything' by #LaurynHill by Lauryn Hill
— Leo Fedorcio (@LeoFedorcio) September 20, 2014
I've seen 20 people leave already. She is doing Ex-Factor "remix" #LaurynHill, what a buzzkill!!!
— Ronda Zelezny-Green (@GLaM_Leo) September 20, 2014
Sheer & utter disappointment is such an understatement to describe how I'm feeling right now #laurynhill #BrixtonAcademy
— Tahirah Sharif (@TahirahSharif) September 20, 2014
#laurynhill I don't understand what is going on here. Worst concert I've ever been to. #NoLie
— . 808INK . (@808Charmer) September 21, 2014
Lauryn has possessed her audience. This is one of those rare GREAT performances. #outrageous #laurynhill http://t.co/6LoGHX1Q9C
— geoff duffield (@geoffduffield) September 21, 2014
#laurynhill musical genius. Don't let nostalgia get in the way of objective critique. She has been amazing #mslaurynhill
— Jide Adéga (@JideAdega) September 21, 2014
I have mixed feelings abt the #laurynhill concert. She is an incredible artist, still at the top of her game. But not feeling the remixes…
— TS (@decolonising) September 21, 2014
The wait was ridiculous, but her voice was still amazing, worth it after waiting nearly 3 hours for her to come on lol #LaurynHill
— Suhur (@Suhur_x) September 22, 2014
