The Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide February 13, 1996 on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip hop music scene in the mid-late 1990s. The Score's production was handled mostly by the Fugees themselves and Jerry Duplessis, with additional production from Salaam Remi, John Forté, Diamond D, and Shawn King. The album's guest raps are from Outsidaz' members Rah Digga, Young Zee and Pacewon, as well as Omega, John Forté, and Diamond D. Most versions of the album feature four bonus tracks, including three remixes of "Fu-Gee-La", and a short acoustic Wyclef Jean solo track entitled "Mista Mista."
Upon its release, The Score was a commercial success, peaking at the number one spot on both the Billboard 200, and the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart (it was a number-one album on the latter in 1996 on the year-end chart). The singles "Killing Me Softly," "Fu-Gee-La," and "Ready or Not" also achieved notable chart success, and helped the group achieve worldwide recognition. On October 3, 1997, The Score was certified six times platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In addition to receiving mostly favorable reviews upon its release, the album has garnered a considerable amount of acclaim over the years, with many music critics and publications noting it as one of the greatest albums of the 1990s, as well as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time. In 1998, the album was included in The Source's 100 best rap albums list, and in 2003, it was ranked number 477 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.The Score is the second and final studio album by the hip hop trio Fugees, released worldwide February 13, 1996 on Columbia Records. The album features a wide range of samples and instrumentation, with many aspects of alternative hip hop that would come to dominate the hip hop music scene in the mid-late 1990s. The Score's production was handled mostly by the Fugees themselves and Jerry Duplessis, with additional production from Salaam Remi, John Forté, Diamond D, and Shawn King. The album's guest raps are from Outsidaz' members Rah Digga, Young Zee and Pacewon, as well as Omega, John Forté, and Diamond D. Most versions of the album feature four bonus tracks, including three remixes of "Fu-Gee-La", and a short acoustic Wyclef Jean solo track entitled "Mista Mista."
Upon its release, The Score was a commercial success, peaking at the number one spot on both the Billboard 200, and the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart (it was a number-one album on the latter in 1996 on the year-end chart). The singles "Killing Me Softly," "Fu-Gee-La," and "Ready or Not" also achieved notable chart success, and helped the group achieve worldwide recognition. On October 3, 1997, The Score was certified six times platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In addition to receiving mostly favorable reviews upon its release, the album has garnered a considerable amount of acclaim over the years, with many music critics and publications noting it as one of the greatest albums of the 1990s, as well as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time. In 1998, the album was included in The Source's 100 best rap albums list, and in 2003, it was ranked number 477 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.false2025-11-08 08:21:39The Score19961996-02-131996-02-1392Hip Hop11179921147003463220f-c312-4cfb-ad30-c42dab83ba72ea321799-9b1d-4e74-a074-a5facf597d82dd2203dd-a149-316b-ad7f-a303dc4fc459/media/data/media4/Music/Fugees/The Score/folder.jpgFugeesFugeesFugees (Refugee Camp)Fugees (; sometimes The Fugees) is an American hip hop group formed in the early 1990s. Deriving its name from a shortening of the word "refugees", the group consists of Wyclef Jean, Pras Michel, and Lauryn Hill. The group rose to fame with its second album, The Score (1996), one of the best-selling albums of all time. The group is often cited as being one of the most significant alternative hip hop groups of the 1990s.
In 1993, the trio signed to Ruffhouse, distributed through Columbia Records. The following year the group released its debut album, Blunted on Reality (1994); the album received mostly favorable reviews, and included the underground Salaam Remi-remixed hits "Nappy Heads" and "Vocab". They followed it up with their second and final studio album, The Score (1996), which was a commercial success, peaking at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart and being certified seven times platinum in the United States. It received universal acclaim, and is considered to be one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time; it included the hit singles "Killing Me Softly", "Ready or Not", and "Fu-Gee-La". Afterwards, the Fugees released the single "Rumble in the Jungle" (featuring Busta Rhymes, A Tribe Called Quest & John Forté), which peaked at number three in the UK. In 1997, the group disbanded so that the members could pursue solo careers. Fugees reunited in 2004, and again in 2021 for reunion tours.
The Fugees sold over twenty-two million records worldwide, and is one of the biggest-selling hip hop groups of all time. In 2007, MTV ranked it the ninth-greatest hip-hop group of all time. U2's Bono dubbed them "the hip hop Beatles". In 2012, BET placed the group on its list of 'Hip Hop's Greatest Trios'. Accolades the Fugees have won include two Grammy Awards and a Brit Award for International Group.