Wyclef Jean
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Introduction to the album Carnival
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Wyclef Jean -- the "hip-hop Amadeus" and member of the multi-platinum recording group the Fugees -- has drawn from an extraordinarily wide musical palette in assembling The Carnival. A kaleidoscopic journey through Wyclef Jean's eclectic musical interests, the album features:  hip-hop appropriations of classic disco ("We Trying To Stay Alive," the album's first single); an internationally-recognizable traditional song transformed into a hip-hop anthem ("Guantanamera"); cutting edge  rapping and scratching; four selections in French/Creole ("Sang Fezi," "Jaspora," "Yel," and the calypso-flavored "Carnival" -- each has been a chart-topping hit in Wyclef's native Haiti); and a non-stop fresh blend of far-flung musical influences and streetwise poetry.
While Wyclef is the primary writer, producer, and performer of The Carnival, he's enlisted a wide range of international talent to help him realize his musical vision: the Refugee Allstars (Lauryn Hill, Prakazrel,  John Forte, and Melky Sedeck); the Latin superdiva Celia Cruz (on "Guantanamera"); New Orleans musical legends the Neville Brothers (on "Mona Lisa"); members of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra (conducted by Wyclef on "Gone 'Til November"); the legendary I Threes (on "Gunpowder"); and more from (text and pictures Wyclef's web site)
Led by Wyclef, the Fugees returned to the group's Haitian motherland to present an historic concert at the Bicentenaire in Port-au-Prince on April 12. An estimated 80,000 fans gathered to celebrate the group's "homecoming" and the music and art of Haiti in an atmosphere of extraordinarily good vibes and peaceful revelry.
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