Lauryn Hill has drawn thousands of fans to central London for events marking her Diaspora Calling! festival, reuniting with Wyclef Jean ahead of a full performance of the Fugees’ The Score to celebrate its 30th anniversary, per allhiphop.com.
The launch began Wednesday with a merchandise signing at 180 Studios, where Hill and Jean met attendees and signed albums and memorabilia linked to the 1996 album. Organisers said thousands attended.
The programme later moved to Piccadilly Circus, where Hill addressed a crowd before a new film by artist Lauren Halsey was screened across the Piccadilly Lights. Hill curated the CIRCA commission, which centres Black imagination and cultural memory.
Hill said she was in a state of embodiment where action speaks through the work itself. She described seeing Halsey’s artwork on the Piccadilly Lights and sharing the moment with the community as deeply moving.
She said her long-term collaboration with Halsey reflects a shared focus on community, imagination and how culture holds collective stories. She added that the African diaspora is not a monolith but its histories and creative expressions belong in conversation.
Diaspora Calling! is conceived as a multidisciplinary festival incorporating visual art, fashion, film, food, wellness programming and diaspora-owned businesses. Halsey’s work will also feature in the wider cultural programme and marketplace on Friday.
Hill and Jean will perform The Score in full, continuing a reunion previously staged during Hill’s anniversary tour. The wider lineup includes Erykah Badu, YG Marley, Zion Marley, Giggs and Fireboy DML, spanning hip-hop, reggae, soul, R&B and Afrobeats.
Organisers have released images of Wednesday’s turnout, documented by Getty Images and photographer Leory Boateng. Tickets, updates and media accreditation are available via Hill’s official site.
The festival opens its marketplace, gallery, film and food programmes at noon on Friday, August 7, with live music starting at 4pm.
The Score, released in February 1996, remains one of the best-selling hip-hop albums of all time and won the Grammy for best rap album. Hill first launched Diaspora Calling! in 2016 as a platform linking artists across the African diaspora.