It’s rare enough as it is to get a performance from Ms. Lauryn Hill. It’s even rarer to get a proper Fugees performance today. The 2026 Diaspora Calling! festival in Milton Keynes, England, was the one opportunity to finally see Hill and Wyclef Jean reunite. However, in a horrible turn of events, a curfew cut history short.
In new footage from Diaspora Calling!, the event was cut short as the Fugees were performing. Because their set started a bit late and the venue had a strict 11 pm curfew, they only got to perform for an hour. They tried to address the audience about the sudden stop. However, their microphones were turned off, leaving everyone upset and in the dark about the circumstances.
Naturally, this made everyone extremely upset, including Dave Chappelle. He compared turning off the microphones for Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean to muting civil rights activists. Moreover, he vowed to hold onto his anger for the rest of his life.
“You’re f**king up history,” Chappelle exclaimed. “You turned off the mic on Martin Luther King … Man, y’all f**ked up, I’ll never forget this. Tell them, whoever’s in charge.”
The Fugees Get Cut Off From Their ‘Diaspora Calling!’ Festival Performance
Ms. Lauryn Hill addressed the unfortunate circumstances on social media, admitting it was their first time working a festival of such a scale. Consequently, complications arose, and she’s hoping to learn for future iterations of the festival. Moreover, Hill teased that they’ll have to make it up to the crowd and the special guests they had in store for the rest of their set list.
“This was our first time doing a festival of this size, and the learning curve was important. Every lesson, challenge and victory will be carried forward into the next time we come together,” the Fugees legend shared.
“This was never just about one day. Diaspora Calling! is a gathering to celebrate the collective power, passion, innovation, solutions, beauty and creativity that exists within us across the diaspora. Milton Keynes became a meeting point for this sentiment, and you showed up with unprecedented energy.”
Wyclef Jean and Lauryn Hill of the Fugees reunited in order to celebrate 30 years of their debut album The Score in 1996. Unfortunately, fellow member Pras wasn’t able to join them due to currently serving 14 years in prison for illegal political donations.
The post Dave Chappelle Compares Cutting Off This Hip-Hop Group to Cutting Off MLK: ‘You’re F**king up History!’ appeared first on VICE.
