Loved and loathed, the legendary Lauryn Hill endured much of the scrutiny the late Whitney Houston did during her storied career.
As such, it’s only natural that Houston’s recent passing resonated with the former Fugees singer.
During a recent Valentines concert in Hollywood, Hill reflected on the tragedy, offering sound words to music lovers and media the world over.
Find out what she had to say after the jump…
Via BET:
“Aren’t you tired of losing our people? I am. Love your artists. When they falter, hold them accountable. But love them. People are now showing Whitney Houston the love and respect she should have received throughout her career — through all of it.”
Adding later, in reference to herself:
“I’m in transition still. Be patient with me. New is coming.”
————————
Potent words from one of music’s most poignant talents.
It’s wholly unfortunate that so many a willing to ridicule greatness while it’s here, only to make it rain crocodile tears when they’re gone. Sad.
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this may sound insensitive but we are always gonna lose people, it’s the final stop for every human being on earth. Death is inevitable. People die everyday, they may not be celebrated but no human life is more precious than another’s. i love Whitney but im not sure what kinda love Lauryn is referring to here; Whitney was a beautiful soul that made bad choices. Were we supposed to smile thru it all, i dont see how that would’ve helped her in the slightest bit. The cracks revealed themselves like they always do (no pun intended)
RIP Whitney
She’s 100% right.
“New is coming”…as in new music? I sure as hell hope so.
Check me out!!!
To be honest, some of them celebrities make it rrrrrrreally difficult to love them at times.
I can think of two of them right now who are definitely trying it.
Is she referring to new music?
I agree with @Grammy. That unintentional pun made me laugh no matter how wrong that was. Lmao!
People will always be critical of others it’s part of the human experience just like death.
It’s not that serious.
All yall can go to hell!
preach sister…….i mean when whitney was alive nobobody cared about her, she was just that washed up singer on drugs now that she is dead apparently she is the greatest…SMH
in reply to GRAMMY DAMMY SAMMY..you dont know what love is. your stil tryna make a joke out of someones pain. and that is a lesson you need 2 learn. its called HUMILITY…have some respect and when u show people unconditional love u realise how much of a gift that love is. your obviously still learning .
but let me teach you…. no one is perfect on earth even when they achieve greatness….doesnt mean people are untouchable and dont have feelings.
re read lauryn hills words over and over and maybe you will think before making a joke out of someone elses pain.
if you loved whitney, you would only speak positive words of her.
i love whitney, she was a gift to this world and her gift stil shines, as is lauryn hill. and alot of other great things on earth.
RESPECT WHERE RESPECT IS DUE. WE LOVE YOU WHITNEY X
😉 Thanks for publishing!
I love hypocrites. We the public did not make Whitney do s***. she made all the decisions for her life.
One of my faves was even more scrutinized, made fun of, and blacklisted for 3 secs of nipple time.
She still held her head up and had never turned to substances to make it better.
Thats why I respect that b****!
I have love for Whitney and always will, but she turned herself into a punchline. Not the public. I don’t respect decisions she made.
I’m only listening to the music I already have in my catolog for her. Not running to buy her s*** now that she’s gone. I’m no phony about this.
Love for her artisty yes. Despising her decisions for her life, yup. It was her life to live, but she lived and died by those decisions, WE did not do that!!!
@grammy dammy sammy
Yes, ppl die everyday but I think you are missing the point. In this new era of 24/7 media there really isn’t that much information to fill up a news day so they have all turned into cheap tabliod gossip sites. They use to provide ppl with facts now all you get are rumors, lies, & total BS (i.e. Was Beyonce pregnant? blah, blah). Whatever failings Whitney had SO DAMN WHAT! Why was it the media’s 24 hour 7 day a week mission to find her flaws, even on a good day, so they could use it to drag her down? If you can recall, last week they were running Whitney completely over, then she suddenly died. A few continued the BS & some tried to show a little respect once she died.
I agree 100% with what L-Boogie is saying. We are all humans, we all fall Y E S ALL OF US, DON’T FOOL YOUR DAMN SELVES ALL OF US FALL! It is not GOD wish for use to stay down and it damn sure isn’t the job of the media to continously hold us down! Ppl can say what they want but Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse and Whitney Houston were KILLED by a MEDIA that doggied their lives damn near everyday until they passed away!
Love and keeping it real are not mutually exclusive.
I’m sorry Whitney is gone. I love her musical legacy. The other stuff not so much.
This whole thing is so sad.
“I’m in transition still. Be patient with me. New is coming”..You know what, im tired waiting on this b**** it’s been f#ckin 24 YEARS since TMOLH was released!! how much longer is willing to drag on what little fans she has left!
Ppl are talking about “they love hypocrites”! Sure she may have made some bad choices but WTF can be gained by only focusing on her mistakes? And many of her so called mistakes were not things we needd to know about. The media is the BIGGEST BULLY around! If they decide to be against no matter what you do good they turn it into a negative or bad they make it worse. Of course they don’t treat all ppl the same what that;s why they can drag up bukksh** from several years ago when it come to certain ppl while glossing over the same actions of individuals who have more recently committed similar offenses!
POINT BEING, STOP TALKING ISH ABOUT YOUR OWN. WE USE TO RESPECT PPL AND NOT CONSTANTLY LOOK FOR THEIR FLAWS AND RIDICULE THEIR EVERY MOVEMENT, WORD, THOUGHT ETC.
It is very easy to verse into both versions: one supports Houston while she suffer from her demons, one avoid Houston during the same period of her life.
I think what happened is normal life, despite the very end might be an accident to confirm. We forget someone when one stays hidden of the rest of the world.
Facts we know are there to let us say she did good choices and sad choices.
Undoubtly she was perceived as a good person, a good soul. Many people appreciate that and keep Houston as a source of inspiration.
Photos, videos of cocaine/crack are very impressive and let a very bad stain in Houston life, stain that will seal Houston in “gone bad” category for some people.
She lately started to start a come back, despite alcohool was very difficult to get rid off. Some medias have exploited that a lot lately, addictively in some ways. Contributing to lead Houston in the “alcohoolic” category, what is touching much more quantity of people than cocaine/crack issue.
Everybody might have lost something during Houston last 10 years: supporters have lost opportunity to see her in good shape and supported like before, while people who do a comeback to cheer Houston regret those 10 years they wanted not to be wasted in doing what we know.
@mobwife
I agree the media degraded those 3 so much it was unbearable to me, like the joke of the day or the week again and again, like if they were not persons and if like that media wasn´t the same who praised them at the start. They are PERSONS. And what hurts me the most is that it seems to like to do it with true greats, instead with the crap there is out there in abundance. If one of these people has a personal problem (like everybody else or at least every family in the world) they make it seem like they are not normal or have murdered someone and the jokes start… to no end. I hate it. But I was always a true Whitney fan and respected her and yes wanted her to make it through, but… is she a joke for that?I can proudly say I love Whitney and she´ll live forever like the true greats
@GRAMMY DAMMY SAMMY
She meant that when Whitney was here, people knew the way she use to sing BUT they kept saying she lost it, called her a crack head saying she was getting into fights. Somewhat like the way they’re speaking about Michael Jackson and when MJ was alive they were ridiculing him.
@roberta
hold on here, don’t be harping at me. i was absolutely not making any joke. so everything else u typed after that is irrelevant because it doesn’t apply to me. i meant every word of what i said and i said what i meant. like seriously, you went off base,
@mobwife
when was the media ever a “facts only”institution? and bringing up the rumour point is not even a strong stance in reference to Whitney cus it’s nothing she hasnt admitted to. Unflattering stories about her were still perpertrated by the media even after her passing. they’re sensationalists, the outpour came from the public mainly. if u agree with her L.Bogie, fine. Personally for me, it doesnt hold water at all. Blame the media if u will, at the end of the day, the problems MJ, Whtiney, Amy had arent exclusive to celebrities and death is sometimes the outcome.
I know it won’t change because IT’S the MEDIA, thats falsifying things!!!! They make up stories and run away with it. And the PEOPLE believes its real…..
YES people pass everyday but G-D wants you to live a LONG healthy life, it ALL goes by your actions. Whitney was beautiful seems sweet from watching her interviews and I never believe the media, I don’t even watch news stations really it’s always negative. Everyone has demons only few overcome them. I hope Lindsay Lohan/ Demi Moore take notice and their “family and “friends” try to put more effort in helping them. IT’s not just black celebrities it’s ALL of them. Fame and fortune doesn’t mean anything, it just brings you more problems.
The media is trying to bring down Chris Brown, i’m glad he’s not letting it get to him.
Well I do find you hypocrites funny. No one forced her to do that “being Bobby brown” show right? Seeing her and bobby clearly altered, was their doing not the “media” or the public.
I remember one episode where she couldn’t make a bowel movement and they had cameras and mics in the bathroom while Bobby gave her a “hand”.
It’s sad she is gone, but when she helped with the bad perception of her. It is what it is.
Whitney has no one blame for death but herself! she had more of advantage with the wealth she had than any other addict off the street to sort out her s*** out, she had the support of most of her peers, family and Clive but CHOSE to ignore them and to ignore going back to rehab even Clive offered to pay for to go back but she declined.
I agree with Lauryn. These people have feelings. The public ridicule is cruel. We should all take personal responsibility and STOP contributing to their pain/problems. They are in the entertainment business. We should simply ignore the ones who we don’t find entertaining and appreciate the ones that we do. Sometimes the scrutiny is downright hateful and uncalled for and some people talk like they know these artists personally when they don’t. We need to do better.
@JILL
they said she lost because she did indeed lose it, why are u guys acting so naive, u have this utopian viewpoint of Whitney when she was nothing like that. i dont feel we have to start airing her dirty laundry now that she’s late but common nobody needs media to know Whitney was in trouble. we could all see it for ourselves. the negatives were obvious, why would the media ignore it? it was affecting her professional life too.
Moral of the story: no one can love you more than you love yourself.
Lauryn needs to get that too….
So true, love Lauryn Hill.
Whitney Houston is one the greatest singers of all-time, but she was also one of the most “troubled”. There’s no question that Ms. Houston was very talented, but she made very poor choices in her life. Whether it was marrying Bobby Brown, smoking weed, or her cocaine use Houston has been struggling for about twelve years before her untimely death on Feb. 11, 2012. However, it pains me to see how most people (mostly her delusional fans) try to pin Houston’s downfall on everyone, but Houston herself. Did Bobby Brown really make her use drugs? No. Houston was a grown woman and she decided to do so. Besides Ms. Houston knew what kind of man Bobby Brown was before she married him, but she decided to do so.
The Fact is Whitney had a drug problem and because of this she lost everything from her voice, money, career, and most importantly her life. However, she made these poor choices on her own and she is the one and only person to blame for her downfall. However, I agree that we should love our artist while they are here, but also we should hold them accountable for their poor choices…. Tough Love 🙂
I agree with her. The media is infamous for kicking people while they’re down. We need to be more sensitive because artists like Whitney have given us way more than we could ever give back in return.
Is the same thing i’ve been saying since Whithey’s death, love your artists in their life time, support them even if they make mistake sometimes.
“People are now showing Whitney Houston the love and respect she should have received throughout her career — through all of it.”
This is so true, the praise she is getting now after her death, should have always been there throughout her career.
I AGREE WITH L-BOOGIE! PEOPLE ALWAYS WANT TO KICK YOU WHEN YOUR DOWN AND THEN WHEN YOUR NO LONGER AROUND THEY WANT TO SING YOUR PRAISES.
WHITNEY HAD HER ISSUES AS DO WE ALL NO ONE ON THIS EARTH IS PERFECT, BUT SHE KNEW HER HELP WAS NOT GOING TO COME FROM MAN AND SHE CONTINUED TO BELIEVE IN THE LORD! AS ONE OF HER FANS WHEN SHE WAS DOWN I STAYED DOWN ON MY KNEES PRAYING THAT SHE WOULD BE HEALED THAT IS WHAT REAL BELIEVERS DO ALL THESE NEGATIVE COMMENTS ABOUT WHITNEY CAN KEEP COMING BECAUSE SHE IS IN A BETTER PLACE THEN WE ARE. IF PEOPLE WOULD HAVE REALLY READ WHAT L-BOOGIE SAID THEN THE COMMENT ( “People die everyday, they may not be celebrated but no human life is more precious than another’s.”) WOULD HAVE NEVER SURFACED !!!!
WHITNEY HOUSTON WAS LOVED AND RESPECTED BY MILLIONS (OTHER CELEBRITIES INCLUDED.) WHITNEY DID NOT LOVE HERSELF. I SAY THIS AS A PERSON WITH ALCOHOL ADDICTION. ONCE ADDICTED TO DRUGS, IT IS HELL TO GET OFF OF THEM. WHITNEY HAD FAME, RESPECT, LOVING FAMILY, JESUS, WEALTHY, SUCCESS, GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENTS ETC AND IT WAS NOT ENOUGH. DON’T BLAME THE OUTSIDE WORLD FOR HER DEMISE.
She is so damn right!!!
I must add that whitney got so much love when she died and only if she got all these notes and flowers from her fans and media, that would boost her and motivate her to come back as healthy as her first era. I was listenting to whitney up to two days before she died and her music being fresh in my mind shocked the hell of of me. I was tense for the entire day!!!
I must say that the media contributes to all this and it is sad that they are so disrespectful to the artists who made great contributions and are icons and legends. For example MJ was published every other day as wako jako. he was saving elephant bones. her was satan, her had a glass casket. etc etc, and the morons believed every s*** written about the poor man who wanted nothing but world peace and love.
With that said, I love my artist, very talented, very family oriented, very inspirational and a life that I look up to and seems to be moving in the right direction, treating the fame mongers the way they should be treated. With kindness.
Like someone said above. The media should stop reporting about bullying cause they are the biggest bullys.
I’m reading the comments and I understand that some people may have their own perception of things, it’s not disrespectful if it’s genuine, but not inappropriate. I’ve seen some remarks on Twitter and a few other sites that are cruel, filled with hate and evil spirited. I can respect those that are speaking their own truth with some tact and hopefully with some empathy. BTW, I speak to Grammy Dammy all the time, he certainly wouldn’t make Whitney’s death a joke. He’s only being honest in his opinion, he means no harm.
What I will urge everyone to do is consider a few things before judging Whitney… 1 Whitney may have been on the road to recovery. We can’t add so much weight and validity to the spin on stories the media have made up about Whitney’s death. If you just pay attention, you will find that all the speculation isn’t based on anything factual yet. The stories are conflicting. Some sources have Whitney non functional, incoherent and appearing to be somewhat disheveled the night she was attending Kelly Price’s Grammy nomination party. Others sources have allowed witnesses to set the record straight , stating that Whitney wasn’t drunk. She was simply enjoying a night out. She had champange , but it wasn’t over done. Many people found her to still be alert (from Kenny Lattimore to Kelly Price).
Their dispelling rumors of blood dripping from Whitney’s leg – which turned out to be wine) and her messed up hair due to dancing with her daughter all night gave more insight. You have to be careful with the media. Sometimes their simply trying to sway you in a certain direction. Facts are facts, but if someone is moving with caution in their everyday lives and making changes that go unnoticed it’s easy to focus on what can appear to be damaging because of what we know of in their past. It’s happens to everyone, we’ve all had someone misunderstand out intentions.
2 I’m simply making a point here to say that we aren’t fully aware of what place Whitney was in (mentally), in her final days. We also have to honor the fact that Whitney did put up a fight to shake off addiction. It was a long difficult journey , but from what I understand she was still in the ring. If you judge, judge people on their character when their trying to show you what their made of.
3 What I must add to this is that Lauryn is right, MJ & Whitney were not celebrated for their music contributions to the world while they were on this Earth. Both of them were 2 artist that were 2 of the biggest you’ll ever find. I have always thought it was remarkable that they’ve sold the most albums ever in 1 era – MJ ‘Thriller’ biggest (for the men) and Whitney’s ‘Bodyguard’ (biggest for the women) and they were being torn to pieces everyday by the media and our own. One minute people adore you, the next they want to see you fail. It turned into a circus and what was forgotten was how they’ve gave the world something so special. Would Elvis and Barbra Striesand been under the same scrutiny? I doubt it. You have to analyze these things, because greats from Josephine Baker to Diana Ross have been mistreated. Some others never receive this harshness. There is one person in particular (maybe 2) that the media spend hours building up to be a GOD. Don’t ignore how lop-sided things are.
It’s simply not easy for some superstars and if your a fan of Janet, Beyonce, or any huge stars of their caliber (because their the only targets), then your well aware of how the media is waiting to turn something they do thats ambiguous into something negative, when alot of times that is not always the case. Whitney may have given them some ammunition, but it doesn’t mean that she was incapable of turning things around. It doesn’t mean that she deserving the constant beating inflicted on her. Do we have to – so willingly kick people when their down? We all think we know Whitney’s stuggles and life so well. It’s easy to not use the proper discernment. A picture can be painted of someone and that can alter your perception. We all fall down, but it doesn’t mean someone’s not trying to get up (like the song). Just remember that the same judgement you place on someone can return back to hinder you one day. So just be careful with that. You aren’t always aware of every factor or encouraged to spread love to uplift someone. Lauryn’s words are golden.
Please excuse me for this long ass essay.
http://www.thepagewithroyalkev.com
Prime Whitney is The Greatest Female Artist of All Time no one knowledgable can dispute that but “to much is given much is required”. Here’s another gem for you “individuality and self accountability”. Life is about decisions and anyone who knew Whitney knew she made her own decisions. No one but Whitney is responsible for her demise although those in her circle who dranked, smoked and partied with her helped in her demise. The moral of the story is be faithful, humble and always thankful for what your given or it will all be taken away from you. God always get’s the glory at the end of the day. The glory here is the gifts Whitney possessed will be treasured and will live on forever.
“It’s wholly unfortunate that so many a willing to ridicule greatness while it’s here, only to make it rain crocodile tears when they’re gone. Sad. ” – That Grape Juice (Sam)
Hypocrisy at it’s best. Do yourself a favor…get out while you still have a conscience.
Yes, whitney should have gotten all of the love and respect that she deserved when she was living, you don’t wait until someone dies to give them their flowers you give them their flowers when they are living because when they’re dead and gone it’s much too late. We all have our ups and downs in life,we all make mistakes. I never knew her personally but I believe that she was a wonderful person,I’ve always loved her music and the movies that she was in. She will be greatly missed
these racisist media moguls will keep harrassing backstabbing character assasinating every black artist that isnt an uncle tom!
then when tehy killed them they act as if they loved them alll along
white racist public and media killed michael jackson they killed amy winehouse they kiulled withney houston they killed james brown and many more including rick james and amiles davis
they spread lies untill the people collapse
and white racist public loves it
but in the end
everyone gets what’s coming to him
if teh media keeps destroying these taleneted artists
then one day people will turn away and stop listening
a media that isnt responsible will defeat itself
there is enough conflicts world wide to fill up the news
there is so much to know
but no
shame on them for spreading gossip
shame on us for listening to gossip