Released: May 31, 1996
Songwriter: Charles Fox Norman Gimbel
Producer: Pras Jerry Duplessis Wyclef Jean Lauryn Hill
[Chorus: Lauryn Hill]
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
[Ad-libs: Wyclef Jean & Lauryn Hill]
(Ah!) Yooo! (Yeah! Yeah!)
This is Wyclef, Refugee Camp (L-Boogie up in here)
Pra'zrel, (Pra'zrel up in here! Ha! Ha!)
Lil' Base sits up there on the base (Refugees up in here)
While I'm on this... I got my girl L (Ah, ah)
One time (One time), one time, (One time)
Ayo, L, you know you got the lyrics
[Verse 1: Lauryn Hill]
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, stranger to my eyes
[Chorus: Lauryn Hill & Wyclef Jean]
Strumming my pain with his fingers (One time, one time)
Singing my life with his words (Two times, two times)
Killing me softly with this song
Killing me softly with his song
Telling my whole life with his words
Killing me softly with his song
[Verse 2: Lauryn Hill]
I felt all flushed with fever
Embarrassed by the crowd
I felt he found my letters
Then read each one out loud
I prayed that he would finish
But he just kept right on
[Chorus: Lauryn Hill & Wyclef Jean]
Strumming my pain with his fingers (One time, one time)
Singing my life with his words (Two times, 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
[Interlude: Wyclef Jean]
Yo, L-Boog, take me to the bridge
[Bridge: Lauryn Hill]
Woah
Woah-oah-ah-ah-ah uh, uh
La-la-la, la, la, la
Woah, la
Woah, la (Ha, ha, ha, ha)
Laaaa
[Chorus: Lauryn Hill]
Strumming my pain with his fingers (Yes, he was singing)
Yes he was 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
Strumming my pain, yeah (Strumming my pain)
[Outro: Wyclef Jean & Lauryn Hill]
Yo, put your hands together for L-Boogie from the Refugee Camp (Yeah, yeah)
(Singing my life)
Up in here, you know how we do, L-Boogie up in here
Wyclef, Pra'zrel, said L-Boogie up in here
Wyclef up in here
My man Lil' Base (Pra'zrel up in here)
Jerry one time (T Rocks up in here, we got Warren up in here)
This is how we— (Warren up, up in here, Outsiders up here)
Refugee Camp, Refugee Camp (We got Fallon up in here, Mulaney, Mulaney's up in here, we got Val' up in here)
[Skit]
Everybody got a breaking point, kid, and they'll rat on you
The family niggas'll rat on you
That's why we gotta be prepared to take out whoever we need to (Man, motherfucker, I told you I was gonna get you next)
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
[Ad-libs: Wyclef Jean & Lauryn Hill]
(Ah!) Yooo! (Yeah! Yeah!)
This is Wyclef, Refugee Camp (L-Boogie up in here)
Pra'zrel, (Pra'zrel up in here! Ha! Ha!)
Lil' Base sits up there on the base (Refugees up in here)
While I'm on this... I got my girl L (Ah, ah)
One time (One time), one time, (One time)
Ayo, L, you know you got the lyrics
[Verse 1: Lauryn Hill]
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, stranger to my eyes
[Chorus: Lauryn Hill & Wyclef Jean]
Strumming my pain with his fingers (One time, one time)
Singing my life with his words (Two times, two times)
Killing me softly with this song
Killing me softly with his song
Telling my whole life with his words
Killing me softly with his song
[Verse 2: Lauryn Hill]
I felt all flushed with fever
Embarrassed by the crowd
I felt he found my letters
Then read each one out loud
I prayed that he would finish
But he just kept right on
[Chorus: Lauryn Hill & Wyclef Jean]
Strumming my pain with his fingers (One time, one time)
Singing my life with his words (Two times, 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
[Interlude: Wyclef Jean]
Yo, L-Boog, take me to the bridge
[Bridge: Lauryn Hill]
Woah
Woah-oah-ah-ah-ah uh, uh
La-la-la, la, la, la
Woah, la
Woah, la (Ha, ha, ha, ha)
Laaaa
[Chorus: Lauryn Hill]
Strumming my pain with his fingers (Yes, he was singing)
Yes he was 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
Strumming my pain, yeah (Strumming my pain)
[Outro: Wyclef Jean & Lauryn Hill]
Yo, put your hands together for L-Boogie from the Refugee Camp (Yeah, yeah)
(Singing my life)
Up in here, you know how we do, L-Boogie up in here
Wyclef, Pra'zrel, said L-Boogie up in here
Wyclef up in here
My man Lil' Base (Pra'zrel up in here)
Jerry one time (T Rocks up in here, we got Warren up in here)
This is how we— (Warren up, up in here, Outsiders up here)
Refugee Camp, Refugee Camp (We got Fallon up in here, Mulaney, Mulaney's up in here, we got Val' up in here)
[Skit]
Everybody got a breaking point, kid, and they'll rat on you
The family niggas'll rat on you
That's why we gotta be prepared to take out whoever we need to (Man, motherfucker, I told you I was gonna get you next)
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