In the four years since Lauryn Hill released her last album, the Grammy-winning Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, some wondered where she'd disappeared to and whether she'd ever reappear. All those critics shall be silenced by the distilled purity of Lauryn Hill's messages found on MTV Unplugged No 2.0.

The founding member of the former hip-hop group known as the Fugees, Lauryn Hill brings forth a soulfully experimental acoustic double album. Lauryn demonstrates how a conscious and intimate listening experience can easily convey an artist's maturity and understanding of self. MTV Unplugged No 2.0 features 13 acoustic songs and nine thought-provoking spoken word interludes. Impressively, I found myself listening to every word spoken by Lauryn during the interludes. Her knowledge and understanding of life both thrills and amazes me.

MTV Unplugged No 2.0 is not a hip-hop album. It's a conscious acoustic masterpiece bubbling with Lauryn's intellectual brilliance. Lauryn accomplishes what so few other artists are able to - she is at one with herself, proud to set her own standard and live by those consciously correct standards. She is a legend in her very own.

Click here to buy the album or read CDNow's album review.