Caribbean Life, May 17–23, 2019 41
HAITIAN HERITAGE MONTH
Haitian songstress Emeline Michel
By Nelson A. King
Only a few performers
earn acclaim for developing a
unique sound. Emeline Michel
can count herself among those
few.
Known for her fusion of
traditional Haitian rhythms
(kompa, rasyn, and twoubadou)
with other musical genres
(pop, jazz, and blues), Michel
said she created a sound, which
appealed to both traditional
and contemporary listeners
worldwide.
Combined with Michel’s
hypnotic and bluesy voice,
which draws comparisons to
the great Joni Mitchell, and
remarkable stage presence,
Michel said she has made her
mark as one of the most notable
Haitian singers, songwriters
and musicians of the past
two decades.
Born in Haiti, Michel said
her foray into music began as a
singer in the Church of Gonaives’
gospel choir.
Later, she studied at the
Detroit Jazz Center, refining
both her voice and musical
style.
Michel said her return to
Haiti showcased “a new sound,”
highlighted on her debut
album, Douvanjou ka leve.
She continued her studies
in France, where she received
classical voice training under
the tutelage of the legendary
voice coach, Richard Cross.
Several albums followed:
Tankou Melodie, Flanm, and
Ban’m Pase included.
Michel’s second album, Tout
Mon Temps, featured the top
single, “A.K.I.K.O.”
As Michel stated, “A.K.I.K.O.”
urged Haitians to “stop fighting,
come together and create
a country that would make the
next generation proud.”
“Without unity, we have no
future,” she said.
A global sensation,
“A.K.I.K.O” charted in many
countries, including Belgium,
French Guiana, Chile, Japan
and Canada.
Michel’s list of appearances
is quite extensive: Carnegie
Hall, United Nations, the
Clinton Global Initiative, Montreal
International Jazz Festival,
New Orleans Jazz Festival,
Fuji Rock Festival, Seychelles
Island Creole Festival, and the
Teatro del Silencio, where she
performed with Andrea Bocelli
and the Choir Voices of Haiti
in Italy.
Still, Michel said it was her
performance on MTV’s “Hope
for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit
for Earthquake Relief” telethon,
which garnered the most
acclaim.
She said her rendition of
Jamaican reggae artiste,
Jimmy Cliff’s “Many Rivers
to Cross,” and other similar
performances, which led the
New York Times’ Ben Sisario to
declare Michel a “diplomat of
music” and a “dancing ambassador
with a voice as serene
and warm like the breeze.”
Michel has received countless
awards, including Haiti
Musique en Folie Award for
Best Haitian Album and Best
Production for Cordes et Ame
(2000).
She has also received the
Catherine Flon Award (2017)
and a New York City Council
Proclamation for outstanding
activism in the community.
In Michel’s upcoming autobiographical
documentary,
“The Aroma of My Land
(2019),” she said “viewers will
have the opportunity to hear”
her life story, in her words,
“and view behind the scenes
exclusives: live performances,
interviews, poetry, music and
pictures,” among others.
By Nelson A. King
UNI, a Haitian an artist collective,
says it is collaborating with the Consulate
General of Haiti in New York in celebrating
Haitian Flag Day on May 18 at
the Judson Memorial Church in Washington
Square in Manhattan under the
theme, “San-Souci.”
Sans-Souci means without worries
and was the name of the first royal palace
in the Caribbean, situated in Haiti,
UNI said on Sunday.
First held on May 18 last year for the
215th anniversary of the Haitian Flag,
UNI is an annual event that showcases
the richness and diversity of Haitian
culture. It is the brainchild of Haitian
professional dancer Sanford Placide.
Placide, who now calls New York City
home, said he created UNI “as a means
of commemorating Haitian Flag Day
and celebrating the nation’s rich cultural
heritage.” Placide has traveled extensively
and has mesmerized audiences
globally with his amazing talents.
Among the artists confirmed for
Sans-Souci are: Amanda Smith, Dance
Theatre of Harlem; Haitian master
drummer Jean Guy “Fanfan” Rene
accompanied by his wife Sirène Dantor
Sainvil; Haitian break dancer Steven-
Vilsaint of Accent Dance; and Haitian
super model Tasha Poupée, who will
be styled by the Jamaican-born, New
York-based fashion designer D’Marsh
Couture.
Placide said UNI and the Haitian
Consulate will honor, at the event, some
prominent Haitian figures, “who have
made their mark on national development
and have contributed to preserving
Haitian culture through the support
of UNI.”
Among the honorees this year: Tony
Delerme, Haitian actor, director and
filmmaker; Lionel Moise, two-time
Emmy Award winning journalist and
host of Business Insider Today; and Carl
and George Daguillard, president and
vice president, respectively, of Stellae
International, Inc.
“Rehearsals are now underway and
the final touches being put on this year’s
staging of UNI, an elegant evening of
dance, fashion and music in celebration
of the 216th anniversary of the Haitian
flag,” Placide said.
Built in 1810 - 1813, less than a decade
after the Haitian independence victory,
Placide said the Sans-Souci Palace
once referred to as the Versailles of the
Caribbean, was the first palace of its
kind in the new world that housed a
black king and queen.
In the intimate venue at Greenwich Village Music school,
Emeline Michel entrances the audience with her mezzosoprano
voice.
Haitian culture comes alive
with ‘Sans-Souci’