Wyclef Jean
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Jean moved to Brooklyn, New York when he was nine, then to Northern New Jersey, where he began playing the guitar and studying jazz in his mostly-black high school. In 1987, Jean, his friend (so close they told people they were cousins growing up) Prakazrel Michel (Pras) and his classmate, Lauryn Hill, formed a group called the Tranzlator Crew before becoming The Fugees. Wyclef worked as a cabdriver.
The Fugees signed to Ruffhouse Records and released their debut, Blunted on Reality, but the album was panned and sold poorly. Their eclectic follow-up, The Score, however, sold over 17 million copies worldwide and turned the trio into international superstars. Jean soon announced plans to begin a solo career with 1997's Wyclef Jean Presents the Carnival Featuring the Refugee All-Stars (more typically called simply The Carnival). The album's guests included Hill and Pras along with Jean's siblings, the I Threes (back-up vocals for Bob Marley), Neville Brothers and Celia Cruz. The album was a major hit, as were two singles: "We Trying to Stay Alive" (adapted from The Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive") and "Gone Til November" (recorded with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra).
Jean went on to work with artists including Queen, Santana, Tevin Campbell, Cypress Hill, Bounty Killer, Whitney Houston, Destiny's Child, Sublime, Simply Red, Mya, Sinéad O'Connor, Kimberly Scott, Mick Jagger, Canibus, The Black Eyed Peas, Eric Benét, Subliminal (on his recent song In Tel Aviv), Turkish star Tarkan (on his recent song "Why Don't We - Aman Aman") and Shakira (on her recent single Hips Don't Lie). The Fugees remained in limbo during this time, with the follow-up to The Score being continually postponed as all three members cultivated solo careers. Jean's second solo album was , recorded with guests Youssou N'Dour, Earth, Wind & Fire, Kenny Rogers, The Rock and Mary J. Blige, the latter with whom he released the song 911 as a single. The critical reception was mixed, with many calling the album scattershot and too far-ranging to be cohesive.
Jean's third album, Masquerade, was released in 2002 and sold well, though critics frequently panned it.
His fourth album was The Preacher's Son, an album that Wyclef considered a continuation of his first album, Carnival.
In 2003, Jean produced rapper Jin's first single Learn Chinese.
In 2004, he released his fifth album, entitled Sak Pasé Presents: Welcome to Haïti (Creole 101) (released in the United States by Koch Records). A freewheeling album that is something of a return to his Caribbean roots, most of the songs on the album are in his native language of Haitian Creole. He also covered Creedence Clearwater Revival's song "Fortunate Son" for the soundtrack of The Manchurian Candidate.
Jean also produced and wrote original songs for the original soundtrack to Jonathan Demme's 2003 Documentary "The Agronomist", a film about the legendary Jean Dominique, an active man of the people of Wyclef's homeland, Haïti.
In the same fashion, Jean crafted the music for the documentary Ghosts Of Cité Soleil [link], in which he found himself on the phone with a young and notorious gang leader in Haïti wishing to leave the life of violence and follow Jean's footsteps and pursue a career in rap.
In 2005, Jean earned a Golden Globe nomination for his track entitled "Million Voices" featured on the soundtrack to the film Hotel Rwanda.
Jean has been active in his support of his native country and created his own foundation Yéle Haïti[link] to provide humanitarian aid and assistance to Haïti, which is currently the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. Yéle is a non-political organization intended to empower the people of Haïti and the Haïtian diaspora to rebuild their nation.
"The objective of Yéle Haïti is to restore pride and a reason to hope, and for the whole country to regain the deep spirit and strength that is part of our heritage." -Wyclef Jean
Television and film appearances
- Performed "President" on the second season of Chappelle's Show. This unreleased acoustic song is a social commentary against war spending, media bias against voices of dissent and asks America to "tell the children the truth" about Christopher Columbus, Marcus Garvey, John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King. However the album version of this song didn't include the truth mentioned previously. Its chorus goes: "If I was president, I'd get elected on Friday, assassinated on Saturday, and buried on Sunday."
- Appeared for a second time on Chappelle's Show in a parody of "Making the Band".
- Appeared on the fourth season of The Apprentice in 2005. Did a rap, "Rubbleman", with the winning team, Excel, as their reward for winning task five.
- Also in 2005, he played a gang leader who leads his group on an assault on the station house in Third Watch.
- In 2004 Wyclef, Pras and Lauryn Hill reunited as The Fugees for an event that was filmed and released in 2006 as Dave Chappelle's Block Party.
- He also starred in popular and entertaining Virgin Mobile commercials as himself. In the commercial a woman approaches him and tricks him into signing a contract which makes them married and she returns him back to her trailer park home where he is mistreated and forced to work and pleasure his wife. Eventually he runs away and ends up going to a police car and is arrested for violating his contract. He ends up in jail afterwards.
Discography
- 1997 Wyclef Jean Presents: The Carnival Featuring the Refugee All-Stars
- 2000
- 2001 Wish You Were Here (Single, released: November 23rd)
- 2002 Masquerade
- 2002 One Nite Stand with German singer Sarah Connor
- 2003 The Preacher's Son
- 2004
- 2004 Recorded "Dance Like This" with Claudette Ortiz for the Soundtrack.
- 2006 Recorded "Hips Don't Lie / Será, Será" (a remake of "Dance Like This") with Colombian singer Shakira
- 2006 Recorded "Why Don't We (Aman Aman)" with Turkish star Tarkan
- 2006 Recorded "Nuestro Himno" in collaboration with Pitbull, Carlos Ponce, and Olga Tañón
- 2006 Recorded "Heaven's in New York" for the One Last Thing soundtrack.
Trivia
- Has an estranged brother named Ross. He works as a janitor at Yeshiva University. There was an incident in the mid 90's when Wyclef needed to come to the University to speak with his brother and greeted the students who recognized him.
External links
- [Official Website]
- [Sak Pase Records Website]
- [J Records Website]
- [Clef Records Website]
- [Gravity Entertainment Website]
- [Lighter Video] with Anthony B and Bone Crusher
- [international Wyclef Jean fansite] with news on Wyclef Jean, biography, discography, photos, interviews
- [Message Board] Wyclef Jean message board and fan community
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