Yesterday, HOT97 held their 2012 Summer Jam in East Rutherford, NJ. Upon the many guests and surprises that were in store, a rumor had spread that headliner Nicki Minaj was to bring out both Azealia Banks and Ms. Lauryn Hill. It turns out that there was only some truth to that rumor, as Lauryn Hill has released a statement to set the record straight and also give her insight on todays music.

No disrespect to Nicki, but I need to clear up an inaccuracy. I was not scheduled to be a special guest on her set at Summer Jam, I was invited by Nas to perform with him. I don’t have details on exactly what transpired between the station and the artists, but I do support artists standing by their beliefs, and walking with integrity. We have to find a better way to commercially exploit music, while giving artists their proper respect. This cannot be done while taking their contributions for granted, or trying to control the scope of their growth and power through threats and fear tactics. We can do better than this, there is a better way, or else ‘we’ (the proverbial we) find ourselves in danger of being hypocrites!!!

Ms. Lauryn Hill