Lauryn Hill Announces 17 Tour Dates

After a string of festival appearances, Lauryn Hill has announced that she'll embark on an intimate North American tour starting next week. The 17-date outing, which begins at New York City's Highline Ballroom on Monday, will venture throughout the East Coast and Canada before wrapping up in New Jersey in February.

In a statement, Hill said she "may never play venues of this size again." According to a press release, the rapper/singer will be accompanied by a live band and will perform a set list of the many hits from her celebrated 1998 solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.

For those fans who are hoping to hear something new from Hill, they can expect to see some of her biggest hits "reworked yet faithful to the rigor, soulfulness and power of the original music." Initial news of the reclusive singer hitting the road for a series of East Coast shows broke a few weeks ago.

When MTV News caught up the iconic artist in August, she kept mum on when the hungry public could expect a new album, saying, "We're getting closer. That's all I can say."

While the singer takes her time with new music, she revealed that she enjoys the versatility of today's artists. "I have respect for what people do," Hill said. "I also like to hear the eclectics, I like to hear the mixture. There's a lot of different creative energies out there right now. I respect the different sounds that I'm hearing. It's been such a long time since I've gotten my voice and my ideas [out]. In terms of collaborations, that's not even something I've been thinking about per se. I'm happy that people are still making music. That we still have a platform with which to make music. It's gonna be interesting to see what the future holds."

Lauryn Hill's tour dates, according to a press release:

» 12/27 - New York, NY @ Highline Ballroom
» 12/28 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
» 1/1 - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
» 1/3 - New York, NY @The Blue Note
» 1/4 - New York, NY @ The Blue Note
» 1/5 - New York, NY @ The Blue Note
» 1/8 - Charlotte, NC @ Amos' Southend » 1/9 - Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
» 1/12 - Charleston, SC @ The Music Farm
» 1/14 - Atlanta, GA @ Centerstage
» 1/16 - St. Louis, Mo @ The Pageant
» 1/18 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
» 1/20 - Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
» 1/22 - Toronto, Ontario @ Sound Academy
» 1/23 - Montreal, QC @ Metropolis
» 1/29 - Atlantic City, NJ @ House of Blues
» 2/4 - Montclair, NJ @ The Wellmont Theatre

Are you excited to see Lauryn Hill on tour this winter? Tell us in the comments!