Wyclef released the Miami-made video for his new song on Haitian Flag Day. Watch it here

Haiti-born Grammy winner Wyclef Jean is at all times on the lookout for methods to deliver a brand new narrative of his Caribbean homeland and its wealthy tradition to music. Now he’s again at it once more —and he’s chosen Haitian Flag Day, Might 18, to do it. The artist was in Little Haiti earlier this month filming a video for the primary tune off his undertaking, Vodou Drill.

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The primary tune is known as “Voye Dlo” (Throw Water). It options Miami-raised singer and “Love & Hip Hop Miami” star Jessie Woo, and was launched earlier this week whereas the video debuted Wednesday. Additionally featured is Haitian musician Eddy Francois of Boukman Eksperyans, who took Haitian rasin (roots) music to the world stage and earned a Grammy nomination. Making a cameo within the video is Wanda Tima, founding father of the Haitian-American social media website L’Union Suite, which will get a shout-out within the tune.

This 12 months marks the twenty fifth 12 months since Jean launched his groundbreaking album “Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival.” It featured lyrics in Haitian Creole also called Kreyòl, English and Spanish together with African rhythms and reggae beats.

“Once we say we’re urgent the re-set button with a purpose to have fun ‘The Carnival,’ I needed to return to what was the essence,” he instructed Miami.com. “For me, after we say the essence, it’s going again to our Pan Africanism, and beginning out with Chapter 2, Kreyòl. My daughter is 17 and she or he desires to talk Kreyòl; all my little nephews need to be taught Kreyòl, which is changing into an incredible language in pushing the tradition ahead.”

He desires to do for Haitian beats and Kreyòl what Latin artists have completed for Spanish-language music.

Why Vodou Drill? Jean says he desires to take away the destructive stereotype related to the Vodou faith and tradition that’s identified for its rhythmical drum beats and what Haitians confer with as “rara.”

“I would like folks to know that our tradition could be very stunning; and we’ve a number of hymns in our tradition, a number of old style hymns that have been round earlier than we have been round….and mixing it with the cadence of a drill permits it to have a brand new sound.”

As for Jessie Woo, the 2 met on Nick Cannon’s comedy sketch “Wild ‘N Out.” Her character appealed to Jean and he later did his analysis on the Canadian-American artist who grew up in Miami and began off as a social media star.

Although Woo has had her share of controversy, Jean stated he was drawn to her rhymes, means to rap in Krenglish, the blending of English and Creole, and her activism. He’s calling this newest launch “a letter to Haiti,” which is seeing an escalation in gang-related violence and kidnappings. The neighborhood the place Jean grew up , Croix-des-Bouquets, has been on the middle of the latest gang violence that has led to not less than 148 deaths, based on an area human rights group, and the displacement of 1000’s, based on the United Nations. None of that’s misplaced on Jean, who references the gang violence in his new single.

“My letter to Haiti is I put myself as the issue,” he stated, including that his message is that “possibly all of us need to look within the mirror and see collectively the place the issue is coming from.”

“The nation has not heard me converse in a really very long time, so it was necessary,” Jean stated, for him to say one thing. As for what’s subsequent from the hip hop star, extra songs as a part of his Vodou Drill undertaking and a brand new album known as “1997” impressed “by the nostalgic years,” in celebration of ‘The Carnival.’

This story was initially revealed Might 18, 2022 7:08 PM.