Lauryn Hill was awarded the BET Icon Award, and some are still saying that she didn't do enough. "It was just one album." That framing leaves out a l
Lauryn Hill was awarded the BET Icon Award, and some are still saying that she didn’t do enough. “It was just one album.”
That framing leaves out a lot of context:
- Her work with Fugees, including The Score, one of the defining albums of the 1990s.
- Her songwriting, production, and vocal arrangements.
- Her influence on generations of artists across hip-hop, R&B, soul, and pop.
- Her live performances and guest appearances.
- The enormous cultural impact of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which continues to be cited as one of the greatest albums ever made.
- 12 Reasons Lauryn Hill Deserves More Respect for Her Impact on Music (w/affirmations) – Survivor Affirmations …….authentic healing language, growth, & “take a deep breath” restoration
But forget all that because Phyllis Hyman, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Prince, and others did what many might consider more than “enough” and didn’t get to see their senior years. And much of that has to do with audience and executive demands on their greatness. When Whitney Houston was losing her voice, critics wrote about being angry about the loss of an “American treasure.” Very few wrote or were genuinely concerned about her health and well-being. Our culture, meaning American culture, can be unhealthy and deadly for all artists but even more so for Black artists.
We keep saying, “Oh, it’s the industry.” I would definitely agree with that. But as the audience, we are participating in that.
There are people who keep asking why Lauryn Hill didn’t give more, as if we didn’t see how this industry scrapes every bit of you and still says that your artistry was not good enough. As if we don’t have video of Michael Jackson trying to fake a marketing advertisement about being thrilled about going on a tour he wasn’t in fact thrilled to go on. When Prince decided that he had grown beyond performing certain songs in concert because he was now a man of faith, some audience members felt entitled to hearing him sing “Cream” (for instance) in concert anyway.
Artists are people. Human beings. Sometimes we see their greatness and we forget that part.
In addition to caring for herself, Lauryn Hill is the mother of SIX children. To care about Black children also means to understand that those babies deserved their mother. By my count, we got to see three children perform for her tribute and her announcement of another’s graduation. It is very clear how important they are to her. My heart smiled when one of her beautiful young adult daughters sang and said, “I’m only doing this for you.”
Sometimes people have to choose what is life-giving and affirming for them. Sometimes as Black people we still have to give ourselves permission to say, “That is enough.” Enough proving. Enough explaining.
Black people must tell ourselves what the world seldom does. You are enough.
In turn, as we close this June 2026, if we truly want to see some of the greatest artists of our community age, one of the things that we must do is learn to look at them with gratitude and appreciation for their contributions without demanding more. If they give us one or two songs and disappear into a life of obscurity if they so choose, we still have to learn to appreciate them and uplift them.
There comes a day when something shifts.
It happens because, somewhere along the way, you stop waiting for those things before allowing yourself to live in peace.
Something changes because you do.
You realize you’ve spent years trying to earn permission to exist peacefully.
Trying to prove you are intelligent enough.
Kind enough. Strong enough. Responsible enough. Forgiving enough. Professional enough. Grateful enough. Talented enough.
You’ve explained yourself until your voice became tired. You’ve worked until your body became weary. You’ve accomplished things you once only dreamed about, only to discover that someone always expects one more credential, one more sacrifice, one more performance.
The finish line keeps moving.
For many Survivors, this pattern didn’t begin at work.
It began in relationships.
Maybe you had to prove you weren’t “too sensitive.”
Maybe you had to prove the abuse was real.
Maybe you had to prove you deserved kindness.
Maybe you had to prove you were telling the truth.
Living like that teaches a dangerous lesson: that your worth is always under review.
Eventually, that habit follows you everywhere.
You over-explain. You overwork. You over-give. You over-function.
You become exhausted trying to convince people of things that should have been obvious all along.
Then one day, another possibility appears.
What if I am already enough?
Not perfect. Not finished. Not beyond growth. Just… enough.
Enough to rest. Enough to enjoy my own life. Enough to say no without writing an essay. Enough to celebrate what I have already built. Enough to stop chasing approval from people who have already decided not to see me.
That realization changes more than your schedule.
It changes your nervous system.
You breathe differently.
You stop entering every room prepared to defend your existence.
You stop collecting accomplishments simply to silence doubters.
You begin choosing work because it has meaning, not because it might finally make someone respect you.
Ironically, this is often when your gifts become even stronger.
Because you’re no longer wasting precious energy performing your worth.
Imagine carrying a heavy backpack every day for years.
You become accustomed to the weight.
Then one afternoon, someone gently lifts it from your shoulders.
You haven’t become stronger.
You’ve simply stopped carrying what was never yours.
That is what releasing the need to constantly prove yourself feels like.
There is freedom in knowing your life is already speaking.
The people who value wisdom will recognize it.
The people who don’t may never be persuaded.
And that is no longer your assignment.
Your assignment is to keep living.
Keep creating. Keep loving. Keep healing. Keep telling the truth.
Not because your humanity depends on your productivity.
But because your gifts deserve to be shared from a place of peace instead of pressure.
Your value was never created by your résumé.
It was never manufactured by your achievements.
It was never waiting at the end of one more accomplishment.
It has been traveling with you all along.
Today, let yourself believe something that may feel unfamiliar.
You have contributed. You have survived. You have learned. You have given.You have loved.
You have carried more than many people will ever know.
And perhaps the next chapter of your life is not about proving more.
Perhaps it is about living more.
Today’s Survivor Affirmation
I release the burden of constantly proving my worth.
I do not have to earn my humanity.
I do not have to perform for acceptance.
I honor what I have already built, what I have already survived, and who I have already become.
I am allowed to rest.
I am allowed to flourish.
I am already enough.
Ms. Lauryn Hill performs Ex-Factor Acapella 2023
