Fresh off a three-month prison stint for tax evasion that put a serious cramp on her summer plans, Ms. Lauryn Hill is back on the road. The former Fugee is coming to Royale — or “Le Royale” as the press release said — in an attempt to class up the joint, with tickets for the December 18 show going on sale Friday at noon.
Put aside some of that holiday shopping money though, it ain’t gonna be cheap to see the Grammy winning diva in an intimate setting: $75 is the tag on the sure-to-sell-out-instantly gig.
Royale is just one of six stops on the brief tour of the Northeast, which only dips as far south as Washington D.C. This follows the announcement earlier this week of a two shows in one-day stand at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City next Wednesday. Somewhat ironically, Hill has dubbed the jaunt “Homecoming.”
It was late last month that a judge signed an order which modified Hill’s original sentence, three months in prison/three months on home detention, so that the singer could spend the final six weeks of the year on the road — albeit not too far from her South Orange, NJ home.
Among the factors that allowed Hill to skirt the system was good behavior during time served in a federal facility in Danbury, CT. Whether that “good behavior” carries over to her show time punctuality remains to be seen, because that’s something the former Fugee has struggled with in the past. But since she got out of prison a few days early last month and managed to drop a new single before she was even out of the gates, there’s hope.
Be forewarned though Ms. Hill –- Le Royale’s live shows end early so they can get the DJ on for the Jersey Shore crowd; that means we don’t have time to sit around getting antsy for you to come on.
LAURYN HILL HOMECOMING SERIES
11/27 – Bowery Ball Room – New York, NY (Early and late show)
12/15 – 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
12/18 – Le Royale, Boston, MA
12/22 – Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ
12/26 – The Paramount, Huntington, NY
12/28 – The Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
