Superstar
I took this track as another diss track to her Fugees crew. I actually thought that while "Lost Ones" was directed to Wyclef, "Superstar" was directed to Pras. Only because he came out with Ghetto Superstar in June 1998 before Lauryn came out with "Doo Wop" in October 1998. I thought it was very interesting of her to use his number one hit and direct an attack to him. I don't actually know if she did direct that attack to Pras --it never was confirmed-- but I'm going to continue to assume until proven wrong. Using The Doors' "Light My Fire," she wrote a song about the lack of tepid material released by artists just to gain number one hits. Lyrics posted below
Here is a live performance from her Miseducation tour in 1999.
She performed the song at the Bob Marley Festival in Miami in 1998.
On the spring section (March 19) of her 2011 current Moving Target tour she performed a medley of Lost Ones into When It Hurts So Bad directly into SUPERSTAR. I'm so happy to hear her hit so many hits off the Miseducation album. All she has to do soon is do another version of the next section of songs and she will have performed almost all the song with the duets as an exception. Superstar starts at 4:34!
Ms. Hill performed at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut on December 17, 2001 where she mostly performed tracks from The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill album. Here she performed Superstar and mixed in The Doors, "Light My Fire" which she sampled to write the song in the first place. Check out the backups vocals on the chorus for Light my Fire. I really enjoyed this version of the tune.
Ms. Hill performed at the Hollywood Palladium on Valentines Day 2012 with stars like Joss Stone, MC Lyte, Tweet, Queen Latifah and LeBron James in attendance. Here she performs the same arrangement as above with a few adjustments. She introduces the "Light My Fire" interpolation before the rap and she omits the backup's fierce vocals on the Light My Fire--which I think is a HUGE mistake. That made the song that much better. The song is part of a huge medley so she kept the show moving.
Here's the medley of Superstar, Concrete Jungle, Forgive Them Father, and Final Hour from her show in Boston on February 23, 2012.
Here's her performance when she was in Melkweg, Amsterdam on April 12, 2012
SUPERSTAR
Yo, Hip Hop, it started out in the heart. Uh huh! Yo!
Now everybody trying to chart
Say what! Hip Hop, it started out in the heart. Yo! Uh!
Now everybody trying to chart
Come on now, baby. Come on now, baby.
Come on now, baby. Come on.
Come on now, baby. Come on now, baby.
Come on now, baby. Come on.
Everything you drop is so tired
Music is supposed to inspire
How come we ain't getting no higher?
Now tell me your philosophy
On exactly what an artist should be
Should they be someone with prosperity
And no concept of reality?
Now, who you know without any flaws
That lives above the spiritual laws
And does anything they feel just because
There's always someone there who'll applaud
Yeah!
Come on, baby, light my fire
Everything you drop is so tired
Music is supposed to inspire
How come we ain't getting no higher?
I know you think that you've got it all
And by making other people feel small
Makes you think you're unable to fall
But when you do, who you gonna call?
See, what you give is just what you get
I know it hasn't hit you yet
Now I don't mean to get you upset
But every cause has an effect
Come on, baby, light my fire
Everything you drop is so tired
Music is supposed to inspire
How come we ain't getting no higher?
Rap:
I cross sands in distant lands, made plans with the sheiks
Why you beef with freaks as my album sales peak?
All I wanted was to sell like five hundred
And be a ghetto superstar since my first album, Blunted
I used to work at Foot Locker, they fired me and fronted
Or I quit it, now I spit it--however, do you want it?
Now you get it!
Writing rhymes in my range with the frames slightly tinted
Then send it to your block and have my full name cemented
And if your lines sound like mine, I'm taking a percentage
Unprecedented and still respected when it's vintage
I'm serious. I'm taking over areas in Aquarius
Running red lights with my ten thousand chariots
Jesus Christ was a superstar, you stupid star
They'll hail you then they'll nail you, no matter who you are
They'll make you now then take you down
And make you face it, if you slit the bag open
And put your pinky in it and then taste it
Come on, baby, light my fire
Everything you drop is so tired
Music is supposed to inspire
So, how come we ain't getting no higher
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