The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill tops Apple’s Top 100 Albums list
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was Apple Music's best album. Photo: Getty
Apple Music has finally revealed its No.1 pick for its 100 Best Albums List and a “once-in-a-generation talent” beat out both The Beatles and Michael Jackson.
The 10-day countdown started earlier this month, with Apple finally unveiling its picks for the best albums.
The list was determined by industry heavyweights like Maren Morris, Pharrell Williams, J Balvin, Charli XCX, Mark Hoppus and other industry experts, songwriters and producers.
The list is an “editorial statement” and streaming numbers were not taken into consideration.
On Thursday, it was revealed The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, Hill’s debut and only solo body of work was crowned No.1.
The 1998 album beat out Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Abbey Road, by The Beatles.
Naturally, any list of this nature is not going to please everybody. Some were stunned The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill beat out Jackson’s 1982 album.
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Other people on social media remarked Hill’s album was a classic.
Others could appreciate it is a remarkable album, but did not deem it worthy of the top spot. Others were just bitter.
Apple’s Top 10 Greatest Albums
- The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998), Lauryn HIll
- Thriller (1982), Michael Jackson
- Abbey Road (1969), The Beatles
- Purple Rain (1984), Prince & The Revolution
- Blonde (2016), Frank Ocean
- Songs in the Key of Life (1976), Stevie Wonder
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good kid, m.A.A.d city (2012), Kendrick Lamar
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Back to Black (2006), Amy Winehouse
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Nevermind (1991), Nirvana
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Lemonade (2016), Beyoncé
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Lauryn Hill’s debut is ‘timeless’
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was a success upon its release in the late 1990s.
She became the first female rapper to debut or peak at No.1 on the Billboard 200 and the album sold more than 420,000 copies in its first week.
Hill acknowledged the album being crowned No.1 wasn’t just an award for her, but for many.
“This is my award, but it’s a rich, deep narrative, and involves so many people, and so much sacrifice, and so much time, and so much collective love,” she told Apple Music.
Tweet from @AppleMusic
Apple remarked Hill, the front woman of the Fugees was a “a once-in-a-generation talent whose inspiration and innovation can be heard through the decades”.
“Artists exhaust long discographies hoping for a cohesive piece of work resonant enough to reshape culture and inscribe its creator into the pantheon; Lauryn Hill did it in one,” Apple said.
Speaking of the top 10 was DJ Zane Lowe, musician and producer, Maggie Rogers and musician and composer Nile Rodgers.
Rodgers simply said Hill and the album were “amazing”, while Lowe remarked it simply has not dated, “not even a fraction”.
“In fact, it feels more fresh and more relevant the more you listen to it …” Lowe said.
“There are a lot of young artists hearing it, and it’s becoming part of their artistic DNA. It’s inspiring and influencing them … It’s timeless.”
The albums that just missed out on the top 10
Ranking the albums would not have been an easy task and there were plenty of classics that snuck into the top 20, narrowly missing out on the top 10.
Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours was ranked the 11th best album on the list and was followed by Radiohead’s OK Computer.
There were a fair few females in the Top 20, including Adele’s 21 (No.15), Joni Mitchell’s Blue (No.16) and Taylor Swift’s 1989 (No.18).
JAY-Z’s album The Blueprint came in at No.13 and was followed by Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan.
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