Experts
Wyclef Jean
Musician / Singer / Songwriter
Jean, member of the legendary group The Fugees and Hip-Hop producer, talks about his childhood in Haiti, post-race politics, and working again with Lauryn Hill. Read More
Record your music in the basement, Jean says. Read More
Celebrities are entitled to self-expression, too. Read More
"Hurry up, Lauryn!" Read More
Jean's music is as eclectic as his influences. Read More
Jean left Haiti at the age of nine only to end up the country's roving ambassador. Read More
Wyclef Jean talks about why so much music still degrades women. Read More
Hip-hop is a culture. Read More
Were Rev. Wright's remarks racist? Read More
It's a lot of pressure, Wyclef says. Read More
The people with the real money aren't doing any of that stuff, Wyclef says. Read More
Celebrities don't have to do charity work. Read More
Restoring Haiti's self-esteem. Read More
Wyclef Jean talks on the power of Will.i.am. Read More
Get off your high horse, Wyclef says. Read More
A generation of Joshuas. Read More
Beyond an endorsement. Read More
Wyclef believes that the new generation has moved beyond racial prejudice. Read More
Hip-hop is going global. Read More
Hip-hop is an expression of local culture, Wyclef says. If you want to get bling and gangsters out of rap music, you need to change the communities that music comes out of. Read More
About Wyclef Jean
Lead Fugees rapper and sometime guitarist Wyclef Jean was the first member of his group to embark on a solo career, and he proved even more ambitious and eclectic on his own. As the Fugees hung in limbo, Wyclef also became hip-hop's unofficial multicultural conscience; a seemingly omnipresent activist, he assembled or participated in numerous high-profile charity benefit shows for a variety of causes, including aid for his native Haiti.
The utopian one-world sensibility that fueled Wyclef's political consciousness also informed his recordings, which fused hip-hop with as many different styles of music as he could get his hands on (though, given his Caribbean roots, reggae was a particular favorite). In addition to his niche as hip-hop's foremost global citizen, Clef was also a noted producer and remixer who worked with an impressive array of pop, R&B, and hip-hop talent, including Whitney Houston, Santana, and Destiny's Child, among many others.