Fugees

Released on February 13, 1996, “Killing Me Softly With His Song” is often remembered as a Fugees hit, but its deeper significance lies in how convincingly the group makes an inherited composition feel newly discovered. The song had already passed through Lori Lieberman’s 1972 recording and Roberta Flack’s celebrated 1973 cover. The Fugees approached it through Flack’s version, then moved its emotional center into the rhythmic and vocal language of 1990s hip-hop. Louisville Public Media