[Chorus]
Another night, slips away
In other words, I should say
There are no words, you should say
There are no words,

Ms. Hill, you got skills
That's a gift, it's real
Get ill, what you spit
Got the power to uplift a hill

I wish I could talk to Lauryn
I mean, excuse me Ms. Hill, and let her know how me we love her, it's real
The industry was beating her up
Then them demons started eating her up
She needed a savior that would bleed in a cup
Yup, we used to kick it in the salad days?
But she look at me like she don't know me when she see me nowadays
I nod, she nod back, that's how it stay,
Her songs still better than anything out there the the hotter power play
Remember, how they accused her saying she did an album without help,
Then she went to Rome to sing and tell the Pope about himself,
This after she left the Fugees started rolling with the Marleys
Got back with the crew at Dave Chapelle's block party,
She made songs about Zion and trying to be faithful
The BlackStar and Torture in New York was so grateful,
Speaking for myself but I'm sure I can speak for Dante,
I got to watch her show with Nina Simone and Harry Belafonte,
We used to chill at the Q?
Her moms was a customer
She used to love to buy the books by Octavia Butler,
Parable of the Sword? the main character's name was Lauryn,
What her album did for black folk's self esteem was so important,
I got concerned when she got sick on the road, she ain't heavy,
I'm her brother and I wished that I can pick up the load, but no

[Chorus]

Ms. Hill, you got skills
That's a gift, it's real
Get ill, what you spit
Got the power to uplift a hill

Get an assistant on the phone I need to Lauryn,
I wanna walk through the storm when the rain is pouring
And I can be her umbrella, when the rain is pouring,
Please is no disrespect to whoever your man is though,
This relationship is strictly musical like D'Angelo,
I know you hate Babylon and wanna see it fall,
But they won't let you read your poem at the BET Awards,
You give us hope, you give us faith, you're the one,
They don't like what you gotta say but still they beg you to come,
Whoa, now that's powerful sis,
That's black power, we get money, keep our eyes on the final hour,
And no I ain't saying you Christ, that would be sacrilegious, right,
But you could blow and you nice, sista them raps is vicious,
Them raps assisted the sight, with the black fist up,
Devils last wishes is a queen who rise pass bytches,
We used to read Francis Crest or anything
But third world press or press, but with the power of the word could just
Pass ideas in our heads like birds in nest,
You gave birth to a new sound like D. West,
Should I be saying all of this while the mic is on,
I might as well let it out cuss one day I might be gone,
I write this song and hope you feel how much we love you when you play it,
Cuss I ain't really got the words to say it,
But yo

[Chorus]

Ms. Hill, you got skills
That's a gift, it's real
Get ill, what you spit
Got the power to uplift a hill

Another night, slips away
In other words, I should say
There are no words, you should say
There are no words,

Ms. Hill, you got skills
That's a gift, it's real
Get ill, what you spit
Got the power to uplift a hill

Overall Meaning

In Talib Kweli's song "Ms. Hill," he pays homage to the legendary singer and rapper Lauryn Hill. The chorus repeats the line "Another night, slips away, in other words, I should say, there are no words, you should say, there are no words." This reflective phrase echoes the emotional struggle many people have in articulating their feelings towards an artist who has touched them deeply through their music. Kweli then goes on to praise Ms. Hill by saying, "Ms. Hill, you got skills, that's a gift, it's real, get ill, what you spit got the power to uplift a hill." He emphasizes how important Ms. Hill's music has been to him and how it has been a source of inspiration and love for many of her fans. He discusses how the industry “beat her up” and how she needed a savior, which she found in her music. Kweli also describes the accusations against her and the Rome concert where she sang and told the Pope about himself.

Kweli narrates his relationship with Lauryn Hill by reminiscing about the days they used to “kick it in the salad days.” He recollects the fun and joyous times they spent together. He then goes on to mention how she made songs about Zion and tried to be faithful. He highlights how her album uplifted black folk's self-esteem and how she became a significant cultural figure representing black power. Talib Kweli shows genuine concern for her well-being when she became sick on the road. He then confesses that he doesn't have the words to express how much they love her and how much her music means to them.

Line by Line Meaning

Another night, slips away
Time passes by, one day at a time

In other words, I should say
To better describe the situation, let me share my thoughts

There are no words, you should say
Sometimes, there are no words that can capture what we feel or think

There are no words,
It's hard to find words to express.

Ms. Hill, you got skills
Lauryn Hill is a talented artist

That's a gift, it's real
Her gift of using words is true

Get ill, what you spit
When she raps, it's so good that it's almost like getting sick

Got the power to uplift a hill
Her music has the power to uplift many people

I wish I could talk to Lauryn
I wish I could have a conversation with Lauryn Hill

I mean, excuse me Ms. Hill, and let her know how we love her, it's real
I want to apologize for using her first name and tell her that we truly love her

The industry was beating her up
The music industry was using and abusing her

Then them demons started eating her up
Then she started to feel the negative effects of fame and the industry

She needed a savior that would bleed in a cup
She needed someone to save her, no matter the cost

Yup, we used to kick it in the salad days?
Do you remember the good old days when we used to hang out?

But she look at me like she don't know me when she see me nowadays
But now when I see her, she doesn't seem to recognize me

Her songs still better than anything out there the the hotter power play
Her songs are still better than anything being played on the radio right now

Remember, how they accused her saying she did an album without help,
Remember how people accused her of making an album without any help?

Then she went to Rome to sing and tell the Pope about himself,
Then she went to Rome to sing and share her thoughts with the Pope

This after she left the Fugees started rolling with the Marleys
This was after she left the Fugees and started hanging out with the Marleys

Got back with the crew at Dave Chapelle's block party,
She reunited with the Fugees at Dave Chapelle's block party

She made songs about Zion and trying to be faithful
She wrote songs about her faith and wanting to be faithful

The BlackStar and Torture in New York was so grateful,
The people in New York loved her BlackStar and Torture performances

Speaking for myself but I'm sure I can speak for Dante,
I'm only speaking for myself, but I'm sure Dante would agree

I got to watch her show with Nina Simone and Harry Belafonte,
I was lucky enough to see her perform with Nina Simone and Harry Belafonte

We used to chill at the Q?
We used to hang out at 'The Q' (a place)

Her mom was a customer,
Her mom used to be a customer at a place where Talib worked

She used to love to buy the books by Octavia Butler,
Lauryn used to enjoy buying books by Octavia Butler

Parable of the Sword? the main character's name was Lauryn,
There's a book called 'Parable of the Sword' and the main character has the same name as Lauryn

What her album did for black folk's self-esteem was so important,
Her album was important in boosting the self-esteem of black people

I got concerned when she got sick on the road, she ain't heavy,
I got worried when she got sick while touring, but she's not a burden to me

I'm her brother and I wished that I can pick up the load, but no
I care about her, and I want to help, but I can't

Get an assistant on the phone I need to Lauryn
I need to talk to Lauryn Hill, can someone help me reach her?

I wanna walk through the storm when the rain is pouring
I want to be her support and protection during tough times

And I can be her umbrella, when the rain is pouring,
I want to be her umbrella, shielding her from the rain

Please is no disrespect to whoever your man is though
I don't mean any disrespect, but I just want to offer my support

This relationship is strictly musical like D'Angelo
I'm not trying to start a romantic relationship, this is strictly musical

I know you hate Babylon and wanna see it fall,
I know you're against the exploitation of people and want it to stop

But they won't let you read your poem at the BET Awards,
The BET Awards won't allow you to read your poem because of your views

You give us hope, you give us faith, you're the one,
You inspire us and give us hope and faith

They don't like what you gotta say, but still they beg you to come,
They might not like her message, but they still want her to perform

Whoa, now that's powerful sis,
Your message is powerful, sister

That's black power, we get money, keep our eyes on the final hour,
Your message is a reminder of the power of the black community, to stay focused on the important things

And no I ain't saying you Christ, that would be sacrilegious, right,
I'm not saying that you're Jesus, that would be disrespectful

But you could blow and you nice, sista them raps is vicious,
But you are really good at rapping and your lyrics are powerful

Them raps assisted the sight, with the black fist up,
Your lyrics helped create a powerful image, with the black power fist held high

Devils last wishes is a queen who rises pass bitches,
The devil's last wish is to be defeated by a powerful woman who rises above pettiness

We used to read Francis Crest or anything, but third world press or press,
We used to read books by Francis Crest or anything published by 'Third World Press' or 'Press'

But with the power of the word could just pass ideas in our heads like birds in nest,
But their words were so powerful that ideas would be placed in our minds like birds building nests

You gave birth to a new sound like D. West,
You created a new sound and style of music, like D. West did with jazz

Should I be saying all of this while the mic is on,
Should I be sharing all of this while the microphone is still live?

I might as well let it out cuss one day I might be gone,
I might as well share my thoughts now, because one day I might not be here

I write this song and hope you feel how much we love you when you play it,
I wrote this song hoping that when you play it, you feel how much we love and support you

Cuss I ain't really got the words to say it,
Because I really don't have the right words to express my feelings

Ms. Hill, you got skills
Lauryn Hill is a talented artist

That's a gift, it's real
Her gift of using words is true

Get ill, what you spit
When she raps, it's so good that it's almost like getting sick

Got the power to uplift a hill
Her music has the power to uplift many people

Another night, slips away
Time passes by, one day at a time

In other words, I should say
To better describe the situation, let me share my thoughts

There are no words, you should say
Sometimes, there are no words that can capture what we feel or think

There are no words,
It's hard to find words to express.

Ms. Hill, you got skills
Lauryn Hill is a talented artist

That's a gift, it's real
Her gift of using words is true

Get ill, what you spit
When she raps, it's so good that it's almost like getting sick

Got the power to uplift a hill
Her music has the power to uplift many people

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Comments from YouTube:

@cakanbi

10y↑40

Read Kweli's article "In Defense of Ms. Hill" and he brought up something I've always felt about the Fugees: it was a singular masterpiece and I am grateful it was made. I hold on to every lyrics and always wanted them to make another album, but only if it felt organic. Ms. Hill and I took a ballet class at the same time and let me tell you, that woman has a presence. I didn't even recognize her at first but she has a powerful aura. I didn't approach her or ever even get close. I figured she was focusing on other things and just wanted to get her plies right like the rest of us. She's a phenomenal artist but a real person first.