Tyler Bunzey
Digging the Digital Crates: The Fugees' "Killing Me Softly"
In 1996, the Fugees (Lauryn Hill, Wyclef Jean, and Pras) dropped their second full-length album The Score. The album featured a cover of Roberta Flack's "Killing Me Softly," one that added a hip-hop spin on the soul crooner's classic.
Roberta Flack's version (1973)...
...was written by Lori Lieberman in 1971 and became a huge hit for Flack. Various artists covered the iconic track, but no other version compared until the Fugees' version in 1996. They won a Grammy for best R&B performance for the cover.
The Fugees sample Tribe Called Quest's "Bonita Applebum" (1990) in their version of the track, taking the guitar riff from Tribe's track.
The Fugee's version was sampled in Fabulous' "Real One" (2015).
And Rapsody also sampled in track in her 2011 record "One Time" (2011).
Normally I try to wrap up by saying something clever about whatever my subject matter is. This song is too dope for that. Just sit back and enjoy it!