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Nel Ust Wyclef Jean ( ; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, singer, and record producer. Born in Haiti, Jean emigrated to the United States as a child. He gained fame as a founding member of the Fugees, a New Jersey–based hip hop trio he formed in 1990 with Lauryn Hill and Pras Michel, serving as the group's lead producer and guitarist. Their second album The Score (1996) became one of the best-selling albums of all time. Following the Fugees' success, Jean launched a solo career with Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival (1997), which featured the Billboard Hot 100-top ten hit "Gone till November".
Also in 1997, Jean guest appeared on Destiny Child's breakout single "No, No, No". Afterwards, he co-wrote the 1999 singles "My Love Is Your Love" for Whitney Houston, and "Maria Maria" for Santana. His second solo album, (2000), was supported by the top 40 single "911" (featuring Mary J. Blige), and received platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His third album, Masquerade (2002), peaked within the top ten of the Billboard 200. He guest performed on Shakira's 2006 single, "Hips Don't Lie", which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100. The following year, his single "Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill)" (featuring Akon, Lil Wayne and Niia) peaked within the chart's top 20; it served as lead single for his sixth studio album and final release on a major label, (2007).
Alongside his recording career, Jean has produced and co-wrote several hit songs for other artists. He also worked with rock icons Bono and Mick Jagger, and co-wrote "Dar um Jeito (We Will Find a Way)", the official 2014 FIFA World Cup anthem, alongside Carlos Santana, Avicii, and Alexandre Pires. Jean contributed to various film and television projects, including scoring The Agronomist (2003) and appearing on the Emmy Awards-nominated 30 Rock episode "Kidney Now!". In 2004, Jean co-wrote and performed "Million Voices" for Hotel Rwanda, earning a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song.
Beyond music, Jean has been active in Haitian politics and philanthropy. In 2007, he was appointed Ambassador-at-Large of Haiti and later ran for the 2010 Haitian presidency,Joseph Guyler Delva, "Wyclef Jean registers as Haiti presidential contender" , reuters.com, August 6, 2010. Retrieved October 19, 2014. but was deemed ineligible due to residency requirements. Wyclef Jean to appeal against Haiti election ruling , bbc.co.uk, August 22, 2010.
"Haiti's electoral commission said that Mr Jean was ineligible to stand as the Haitian constitution requires candidates to have lived in the country for five years prior to an election. The 40-year-old singer lives in the US." His charity, Yéle Haiti, raised funds for Haitian relief efforts, including the 2010 Haitian earthquake, before disbanding amid financial scrutiny. Jean has won three , and his production work on Santana's Supernatural (1999) was later recognized by the Grammy Hall of Fame. He also received the BET Humanitarian Award and NAACP Vanguard Award. Past Winners Search , National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Retrieved October 19, 2014. In 2011, Haitian President Michel Martelly awarded him the National Order of Honour and Merit. Jean is among the few artists to chart on 16 different Billboard radio charts.
Jean graduated from Newark's Vailsburg High School and enrolled for one semester at Five Towns College in New York. In 2009 he enrolled in the Berklee College of Music to pursue his diploma. Jean has been a resident of Saddle River, South Orange, and North Caldwell, New Jersey.Cruz, Alicia. "Did Wyclef Jean fake his gunshot injury in Haiti?" , NewJerseyNewsroom.com, March 23, 2011. Retrieved January 3, 2012. "Wyclef Jean, a North Caldwell resident, told media outlets a bullet grazed his hand in the hand as he stood outside of his vehicle to make a phone call late Sunday night. Jean, who was born in Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti, added that he did not know if the alleged gunshots were directed towards him."
In 1996, the Fugees released their second album, titled The Score. The album achieved significant commercial success in the U.S., topping the Billboard 200. It was later certified as six-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It performed well in several overseas nations, topping the Austrian, Canadian, French, German and Swiss albums charts, while also peaking at number two in Sweden and the United Kingdom.
Four commercially successful singles were released from The Score; "Fu-Gee-La", the first single from the album, peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified gold by the RIAA and by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI). The other three singles – "Killing Me Softly", "Ready or Not" and "No Woman, No Cry" – did not appear on the Billboard Hot 100 as they were not released for commercial sale, making them ineligible to appear on the chart, although they all received sufficient airplay to appear on the Hot 100 Airplay and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay charts. "Killing Me Softly", a cover of the Roberta Flack song "Killing Me Softly with His Song", performed strongly in other territories, topping the singles charts in Australia, Austria, Germany and the United Kingdom, among several others.
"Ready or Not" peaked at number one in the UK and at number three in Sweden. "No Woman, No Cry" – a cover of the Bob Marley & The Wailers song of the same name – topped the singles chart in New Zealand. The Fugees collaborated with singer Bounty Killer on the single "Hip-Hopera" and recorded the single "Rumble in the Jungle" for the soundtrack to the film When We Were Kings in 1997: although they have not released any studio albums since The Score, a compilation album, Greatest Hits, was released in 2003, and spawned the single "Take It Easy".
Released in 2000, Jean's second solo album was recorded with guests including Youssou N'Dour; Earth, Wind & Fire; Kenny Rogers; Dwayne Johnson; and Mary J. Blige. With Blige, he released "911" as a single. He was nominated for Best Hip-Hop Act at the 2000 MTV Europe Music Awards.
Following the 9/11 attacks, Jean participated in the benefit concert , contributing a cover of the Bob Marley song "Redemption Song". His third album, Masquerade, was released in 2002. His fourth album, The Preacher's Son, was released in November 2003 as the follow-up to his first solo album, The Carnival. In 2004, he released his fifth album, (released in the U.S. by Koch Records). Most of its songs are in his native language of Haitian Creole like "Fanm Kreyòl" with the French Caribbean Admiral T. Jean also figured on the album Mozaik Kreyòl of this one in the song "Secret Lover". He then covered Creedence Clearwater Revival's song "Fortunate Son" for the soundtrack of the film The Manchurian Candidate (2004) and wrote the song "Million Voices" for the film Hotel Rwanda (2004).
In 2006, Jean was featured in Shakira's smash hit "Hips Don't Lie". The song went on to reach number one in over 55 countries. Jean and Shakira went on to perform the song at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards and the 2007 Grammy Awards. He joined Shakira on various dates of her Oral Fixation Tour in the U.S. Also in 2007, Jean scored the Angelina Jolie documentary A Place in Time.
In August 2007, Jean released a new song called "Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill)" featuring Lil Wayne, Niia and Akon, which references the song "C.R.E.A.M." by the Wu-Tang Clan. One month later he released an album that he recorded in Atlanta, Georgia, with the help of T.I., who also collaborated with Jean on the songs "You Know What it is" and "My Swag" on the latter's 2007 album, T.I. vs. T.I.P. In 2008, an upbeat single "Let Me Touch Your Button" featuring will.i.am was released in the UK in conjunction with Jean's involvement with UK MOTOROKRSTAR. Jean released a song with Serj Tankian called "Riot".
In 2009, Jean was featured on the song "Spanish Fly" with Ludacris and Bachata group Aventura included on Aventura's album The Last, released in June. On June 17, 2009, Jean announced via Twitter that his new album would be called wyclefjean and was to be released sometime in February 2010. The first single from wyclefjean was to be titled "Seventeen" and feature Lil Wayne. In August 2009, Jean unveiled his video "Haitian Slumdog Millionaire" featuring Haitian artist Imposs. Making a guest appearance in the video was New York City entrepreneur and philanthropist Ali Naqvi.
Jean's self-entitled studio album was due to be released in 2011, but has yet to surface. "Hold On", the lead single from the project, features dancehall artist Mavado. In May 2014, a Jean video, "April Showers", was banned from YouTube after Cathy Scott, author of The Killing of Tupac Shakur, lodged a copyright infringement complaint claiming an image in the video was similar to an autopsy photo released in her book. YouTube temporally banned the video. Wyclef Video Pulled Over Tupac Autopsy Image, bet.com. Retrieved October 19, 2014. TMZ, which broke the story, reported that Scott and the video's director, Hezues R', had settled the matter and agreed that Hezues R' would include a screen credit to the book at the end of the video. Tupac Shakur: Fake Autopsy Music Video Dispute SETTLED , TMZ.com. Retrieved October 19, 2014.
Jean worked with Avicii on a single titled "Divine Sorrow" from his upcoming EP J'Ouvert. He collaborated again with Avicii in 2015 on the song "Can't Catch Me" on the album Stories, which also featured Matisyahu. This marks the third collaboration with Avicii and Jean, following "Dar um Jeito (We Will Find a Way)" and "Divine Sorrow".
Jean appeared as a featured vocalist in The Knocks' single "Kiss The Sky", which was released in January 2016. This song was part of their debut album, entitled 55, released in March 2016. Jean was also featured on the Young Thug song "Kanye West", from the rapper's mixtape Jeffery, released in August 2016. Wyclef wrote an autobiography entitled Purpose: An Immigrant's Story with the help of journalist Anthony Bozza, published in September 2012.
In January 2017, Wyclef announced that his J'ouvert EP would be released on February 3, 2017. On February 2, 2017, Wyclef released his new single "Ne Me Quitte Pas", which was featured on his J'ouvert Deluxe EP. The EP was released and charted at 117 on the Billboard 200, and 50 on the Canadian Hot Albums. Four more singles were released from the album, "Life Matters", "The Ring", "Holding onto the Edge" and "Little Things". On June 9, Wyclef announced on his Instagram that would become available to pre-order on June 22, 2017.
In November 2017, Wyclef released his, Wyclef Jean Inspired By mixtape. The mixtape features reworks of some of today's most popular records like Kendrick Lamar's "DNA." The project also offers up social commentary in the track, "Chain Gang Free Meek Mill", features an original song called, "Camels and Ferraris", and also pays tribute to the late Whitney Houston on, "Inspired By Whitney".
In December 2017, Wyclef along with Naughty Boy appeared on the final of the fourteenth series of The X Factor, guest performing "Dimelo" with contestants Rak-Su. Rak-Su won and the performance was released as the winner's single.
On December 25, 2017, Wyclef announced The Carnival Tour via social media. The tour had two legs with a total of 56 shows. It started on February 9, 2018, and ended on October 26, 2018.
On March 8, 2019, Wyclef released his ninth studio album, Wyclef Goes Back to School Volume 1.
On August 20, 2010, his bid for candidacy was rejected by Haiti's Provisional Electoral Council. He was turned down because he did not meet the constitutional residency requirement of having lived in Haiti for five years before the November 28 election. Jean said, "I respectfully accept the committee's final decision, and I urge my supporters to do the same".
After the 2010 Haitian earthquake, Yéle became prominent in raising funds for disaster relief. According to Jean, Yéle raised over $1 million in 24 hours over Twitter. Jean took part in an MTV donation drive and other publicized fundraising, such as the Hope for Haiti Now telethon, which he organized with actor and producer George Clooney. Yéle donated funds to orphanages, street cleaning crews, hospitals and medical clinics and organized food service to provide hot meals to refugees and victims of the catastrophe.
By February 2010, questions were reported about the history and management of Yéle. The New York Times reported that the charity had failed to file tax returns for several years. The former executive director, Sanjay Rawal, questioned Yéle's ability to handle large projects and criticized its lack of financial controls.
By August 2012, chief executive Derek Q. Johnson was the last remaining officer of the charity. He resigned and announced that Yéle was closed, saying in a statement, "As the foundation's sole remaining employee, my decision implies the closure of the organization as a whole." New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman investigated Yéle and attempted to reach a settlement over allegations of mismanagement. Schneiderman said that the charity had made improper payments to Jean, members of his family, and personal acquaintances. In 2010, after the earthquake in Haiti, Yéle spent more than $9 million – with half of it going to travel expenses by Jean and his entourage, consultants' fees, and real estate fees. The charity has been the subject of lawsuits in Haiti for unpaid debts.
One of Jean's cousins is Raymond Alcide Joseph, a political activist, journalist and diplomat.Joseph, Raymond A. 2014. 'For whom the dogs spy:' Haiti: from the Duvalier Dictatorships to the Earthquake, Four Presidents, and Beyond. New York: Arcade Publishing.
In 2012 Jean published his memoir called Purpose: An Immigrant's Story. and which takes him through the turmoil of immigration, The book depicts with painful detail, the story of his childhood in Haiti, to his rise to the American music scene. Wyclef describes growing up in Haiti so poor, he actually ate dirt. Purpose is considered one of the top ten reads for Haitian Americans as per the Haitian Times.
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|- |rowspan|2004 |rowspan|"Million Voices” – Hotel Rwanda |Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song | |-
|- |rowspan="3"|1997 |rowspan="2"| The Score |Album of the Year | |- |Best Rap Album | |- |"Killing Me Softly" |Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal | |- |rowspan="2"|1998 |"Guantanamera" (featuring Celia Cruz and Jeni Fujita) |Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group | |- | The Carnival |Best Rap Album | |- |1999 |"Gone till November" |Best Rap Solo Performance | |- |2000 | Supernatural (as a producer) |Album of the Year | |- |2001 |"911" (with Mary J. Blige) |Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal | |- |2006 |"Million Voices" (shared with Jerry Duplessis and Andrea Guerra) |Best Song Written for Visual Media | |- |2007 |"Hips Don't Lie" (with Shakira) |Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals | |-
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