Jean, Wyclef
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Wikipedia-Article "Wyclef Jean"
Wyclef Jean (born October 17, 1972 in La Plaine, Haiti) is a rapper, producer, and member of the superstar hip hop trio The Fugees, known now for a series of high-profile hit singles.
Born in Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti, Jean moved to Brooklyn when he was nine, then to Northern New Jersey, where he began playing the guitar and studying jazz in 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 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 and Eric Benét. 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 The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book, recorded with guests Youssou N'Dour, Earth, Wind & Fire, Kenny Rogers, The Rock and Mary J. Blige. 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 2004, he released his fifth album, entitled Sak Pasé Presents: Welcome to Haiti (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 or Kreyòl. 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 the 2003 Documentary "The Agronomist", a film about the legendary Jean Dominique, an active man of the people of Wyclef's homeland, Haiti.
In 2005, Jean earned a Golden Globe nomination for his track entitled "Million Voices" featured on the soundtrack to the film Hotel Rwanda.
In November 2005, a Wyclef Jean concert scheduled to be put on at Harvard University had to be cancelled due to lackluster ticket sales.
Television Appearances
- Performed "If I was President" on Chappelle's Show season 2. 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" with P Diddy.
- 2005. Appeared on Season 5 of The Apprentice. Did a rap, "Rubbleman", with the winning team, Excel, as their reward for winning task five.
Discography
- 1997 Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival Featuring the Refugee All-Stars
- 2000 The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book
- 2002 Masquerade (album)
- 2003 The Preacher's Son
- 2004 Sak Pasé Presents: Creole 101 (Welcome to Haiti)