The Score by Fugees

Comprised of rapper/singer Lauryn Hill, rapper Pras Michel, and rapper/singer Wyclef Jean, the Fugees were an award-winning American hip hop group in the 1990s. They released two albums in the early part of the decade, 1994's Blunted on Reality and the 1996 Grammy-Award winning album The Score. In the United States, The Score sold over 6 million copies and reached #1 on the U.S. Billboard 200. It remained in the top ten for over half of the year and is one of the best-selling hip hop albums of all time. 

While attending Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey, Hill was approached by Michel about joining a music ensemble, which would eventually become the Fugees. The band's name is a play on the word "refugee," and a known derogatory term for Haitian Americans. Both Michel and Jean are Haitian. Columbia/ Ruffhouse Records signed the Fugees to a recording deal in 1993. The Score was recorded between June and November 1995 in Jean’s uncle’s basement, nicknamed the Booga Basement. 

Released in February 1996, the album gained momentum off of the Fugees covers of "No Woman No Cry" and "Killing Me Softly with His Song." The hit single "Ready or Not" reimagined The Delfonics' "Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide From Love)" and also included a sample from Enya. At the 1997 Grammy Awards, The Score was recognized as with the Best Rap Album award, as well as the award for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Killing Me Softly." The Score is the last studio album the group released. In 1998 The Source included it on a list of the 100 best rap albums of all time, and Rolling Stone ranked it #44 on their list of the 100 Best Albums of the Nineties in 2011. 

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