The Fugees – Killing Me Softly With His Song [1996]

“Killing Me Softly with His Song” is a song composed by Charles Fox with lyrics by Norman Gimbel. It was a number-one hit in 1973 for Roberta Flack. The song has been remade by numerous artists, most notably Fugees, whose rendition, simply titled “Killing Me Softly”, contributed to their Grammy Award-winning album, The Score.

Hip hop group the Fugees covered the song in 1995 on their album The Score, with Lauryn Hill singing the lead vocals. Their version, titled “Killing Me Softly,” became a hit, reaching number two on the U.S. airplay chart. The song went to number one in the United Kingdom, where it became the country’s biggest-selling single of 1996. It has since sold 1.36 million copies in Britain.

“Killing Me Softly” – Lyrics

[LAURYN:]
Strumming my pain with his fingers,
Singing my life with his words,
Killing me softly with his song,
Killing me softly with his song,
Telling my whole life with his words,
Killing me softly with his song.

[FUGEES:]
Hi, yo yea yea.
This is wyclef refugee
El boogie up in here…
Rise well, little
While I’m on this I got my girl L one time! one time!
Hey yo L you know you got the lyrics!

I heard he sang a good song, I heard he had a style,
And so I came to see him and listen for a while.
And there he was this young boy, a stranger to my eyes,

Strumming my pain with his fingers (one time),
Singing my life with his words (two times),
Killing me softly with his song,
Killing me softly with his song,
Telling my whole life with his words,
Killing me softly with his song.

I felt all flushed with fever, embarrassed by the crowd,
I felt he found my letters and read each one out loud.
I prayed that he would finish, but he just kept right on…

Strumming my pain with his fingers (one time),
Singing my life with his words (two times),
Killing me softly with his song,
Killing me softly with his song,
Telling my whole life with his words,
Killing me softly with his song

[CLEF:]
Yo L-Boogie, take it to the bridge

[LAURYN:]
Strumming my pain with his fingers (yes, he was singing),
Singing my life with his words,
Killing me softly with his song,
Killing me softly with his song,
Telling my whole life with his words,
Killing me softly with his song.

[Fading:]
Strumming my pain
Singing my life with his words,
Killing me softly with his song,
Killing me softly with his song,