STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS

Lauryn Hill Getting Booed Off Stage At The Apollo Theater Resurfaces In Rare Clip

A much-needed message amid dark times.

The night of February 24 in 1998 marked a historical year for the Recording Academy, the governing body that oversees the Grammys. Hip-hop icon Lauryn Hill would walk away from the 41st annual Grammy Award ceremony with five accolades for her critically-acclaimed solo debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Of those awards, she also nabbed Album of the Year, a first for the hip-hop community. 

  • The world is journeying through a wave of nostalgia from better days, especially in light of the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic that has brought large parts of society to a halt. Digging deep from the hip-hop vault, XXL Magazine brought out a rare clip of a young Lauryn before she became hip-hop royalty. In the video, a baby-faced Lauryn is singing the Jackson 5’s timeless classic, “Who’s Lovin’ You,” on Amateur Night at the Apollo Theater. In its heyday, audiences at Apollo were notoriously known for being a tough crowd to please, and Lauryn barely gets a few verses into the song before they start booing her. Nevertheless, the then-13 year old keeps singing in spite of the jeering, as seen in the one-minute clip.  

  • “Lauryn Hill got booed off stage at the Apollo in 1988,” XXL captioned the post. “Three decades later, she’s widely regarded as a LEGEND.”

  • “Moral lesson. Don't stop,” one person commented on Twitter.

    “Just goes to show how much of a legend she is,” a second chimed in. 

    “She showed the world that's she'd be great. #realdetermination,” a third tweeted. 

    One person chimed in to say that the crowd did eventually warm up and give Lauryn her dues after she finished her performance, though.

     See what else people had to say about the rare clip below: 

     

  • advertisement
  • advertisement
  • advertisement

Latest News

Subscribe for BET Updates

Provide your email address to receive our newsletter.


By clicking Subscribe, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers) and other information from BET and the Paramount family of companies. You understand that you can unsubscribe at any time.