See Crossfade's review and photos from Ms. Lauryn Hill's UM Homecoming concert.
After some rumbling that Lauryn Hill could be making a rare live appearance at the Arsht Center turned out to be false, it turns out she's making a Miami appearance after all. The reclusive legend is set to headline this year's homecoming concert at the University of Miami on November 5 according to the student newspaper. The bad news for all "townies" though is that the event is "officially" open to UM students and alumni only.
The announcement comes after the Arsht Center sent out a promotional flyer touting a November 6 concert by Hill. They clarified that the flyer was premature, though hinting the concert could happen at a different venue. Whether this is the other venue the rep from the Arsht was alluding to or a separate November 6 gig open to the general population is still a possibility that remains to be seen.
But any concert by Hill is huge news, considering she's been a veritable recluse for the past ten years. Besides a short lived rocky reunion with the Fugees between 2004 and 2006, she only returned to the stage on a regular basis late last year. Those shows have received mixed reviews and have had their share of drama.
She toured with the Rock the Bells festival this year, but on the tour's last date in Baltimore she made fans wait three hours before she took the stage. Apparently, she was busy getting a manicure, and when she did take the stage she rushed through a 20-minute set.
Then again, when things go smoothly she can still bring it. Here she is performing a solo version of the Fugees classic "Ready or Not" at the NYC date of Rock the Bells.
Here's what our brothers-in-blog at the Village Voice had to say about that NYC show:
Sorry to disappoint all you blog-readers but she didn't do anything crazy--she was usually somewhere between a bit frazzled, totally enraptured, kind of psyched, frustrated at mic feedback, and frantically flapping her arms to wave directions to her band. If you believe Twitter, her voice is shot (she did drop "To Zion" about an octave), but I think it's just gone from one type of beautiful to another type of beautiful--a little more rough around the edges, a little easier to crack in the romantic parts, and still enough to make Chris Rock look like he was gonna break down on the sidelines. And oh yeah, go see her because her arrangements are totally fucking bonkers now.We just hope things go smoothly, but most of all, considering the average UM frosh was only 8 when The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill came out, those 'Canes appreciate the hell out of it. For the rest of us, Robyn is in town that same night, and you really can't go wrong with her.
