Lauryn Hill has postponed the remainder of her tour dates this year until 2024 due to vocal strain.
“As many of you may know, I’ve been battling serious vocal strain for the past month,” Hill said in a statement posted on her Instagram account Tuesday evening. “I made it through each show by taking prescribed prednisone, but this can be detrimental to the body when taken in large amounts over long periods of time. In order to prevent any long-term negative affect on my voice and my body, I need to take time off to allow for real vocal recovery so that I can discontinue the medication completely.”
The “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” singer has been on the road for her “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” 25th anniversary tour, which included stops at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles and the Kia Forum in Inglewood. The tour has featured a reunion with her Fugees bandmates Wyclef Jean and Pras, who is facing a possible 20-year prison sentence for a political conspiracy conviction.
Earlier in the tour, Hill postponed October shows in Philadelphia and Fort Worth, Texas, to rest her voice. She cited the same vocal strain issue and said she had been “masking the injury with medication.”
She and the Fugees will still play a show Saturday in Philadelphia, a makeup of the previous cancellation.
“Being so close to New Jersey, it’s basically hometown for us — so we’ll close out the year with one final show amongst friends and family,” Hill wrote.
Canceled shows include stops in Atlanta, Nashville, Charlotte, N.C., Huntsville, Ala., Tampa, Fla., Miami and Boston. Hill said she planned to add shows across the U.S. and internationally in 2024.
During her stop in L.A. at Crypto.com Arena, Hill made headlines after giving a six-minute speech in which she defended her famous tardiness to performances, telling the crowd they were “lucky I make it on this … stage every night.”
Hill brought out her four children and mother, Valerie, and said she performs “because I stand here in the name of God and I do it.”
She continued: “God is the one who allows me to do it, who surrounded me with family and community when there was no support.”
Times staff writer Alexandra Del Rosario contributed to this report.
