Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Behind Lauryn Hill's Decline: Pressure, Bad Relationships
By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 30, 2012
Modified Jul 30, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 30, 2012
Modified Jul 30, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Last month, groundbreaking rap and R&B singer Lauryn Hill pleaded guilty to tax evasion, after not paying taxes on $1.6 million in income between 2005 and 2007. Hill posted a rambling defense on Tumblr, explaining she went underground because she was being "manipulated and controlled by a media protected military industrial complex with a completely different agenda." Now, a sad profile examines what went wrong for her.
In The Daily Beast, Allison Samuels suggests a combination of bad relationships (romantic ones with Wyclef Jean and then Rohan Marley and a spiritual one with "Brother Anthony") and pressure to meet the expectations that her seminal album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, have taken a toll. A former employee said, "She went from one unhealthy relationship to another very quickly. But that’s what happens when you really want and really need to be loved and in love. That’s how Lauryn was." Hill, who lives in NJ, had five children—between 1997 and 2008—with Marley and then another one in 2011: "No one knows when exactly the longtime couple split, but Marley is currently engaged to Brazilian model Isabeli Fontana. He has denied being the father of Hill’s sixth child, born last year. Neither event has been helpful to Hill’s state of mind, say friends."
Also, there was a lawsuit from producers who claimed they co-wrote and co-produced some of the songs on the album, which was eventually settled out of court for $5 million. Her friend said, "It’s unfortunate because it wasn’t Lauryn’s idea to say she’d done it all. It was the record company that was big on saying she’d done all the writing, producing, and everything else. They wanted her to have title to somehow make her bigger than she was. They do that with a lot of artists, but it backfired that time, and Lauryn got caught in the middle. She was very angry about it and stayed angry for a while."
However, her attorney remains upbeat. Nathan Hockman told The Daily Beast, "By admitting her guilt, accepting full responsibility for her actions, and paying the IRS, we hope that Ms. Hill will receive a fair and balanced sentence of probation." Also: "He added that the singer is fully capable of continuing a lucrative musical career that won’t be affected by recent events." Here she is at a recent Summer Jam with Nas and then "Doo-Wop (That Thing)" from The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill:
Tagged
Lauryn Hill
Music
r&b
rap
tax evasion
wyclef jean
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
How the NYC Marathon has changed in the last 50 years
Spoiler alert: It's still 26.2 miles.
By
Hannah Frishberg
Published Oct 14, 2026 at 2:36 p.m. ET
A visit to Art of Play, the Brooklyn store in an animatronic bird beef with Kelly Clarkson
"Kelly Clarkson has put us in danger," says the co-owner of Art of Play.
By
Sonia Rao
Arts & Entertainment
A visit to Art of Play, the Brooklyn store in an animatronic bird beef with Kelly Clarkson
"Kelly Clarkson has put us in danger," says the co-owner of Art of Play.
By
Sonia Rao
The hottest way to show you're an authentic New Yorker is… riding a Citi Bike?
By
Lindsay Lee Wallace
Is NYC’s hottest attraction the free observation deck at 1 Centre Street?
By
James Ramsay
What happens when NYC kids take lessons in rock music? Really good bands.
By
Jayson Greene
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .