Nel Ust Wyclef Jean or known publicly as Wycleaf Jean is an American Haitian musician, record producer and politician born on October 17, 1972, in Haiti. Jean was a son of a priest Nazarene, and moved to the United States, precisely Brooklyn, New York when he was nine years old before moving again to northern New Jersey.
Jean had attended Eastern Nazarene College but stopped halfway. Jean himself has announced that he plans to continue school at Berklee College of Music in Boston. The biggest influence on music is Haitian reggae and Bigga.
In 1994, Jean married a designer named Marie Claudinette and adopted a daughter named Angelina Claudinelle Jean. They renewed their marriage vows in August 2009.
CAREER
His career began with being a member of the band The Refugee Camp (or better known as The Fugees) with fellow immigrants. The band’s debut album was Blunted on Reality, followed by a second album entitled The Score.
In 1997, the Wycleaf started his solo career with Wyclef Jean’s Presents the Carnival Featuring the Refugee All-Stars (which
known as The Carnival) which still raises immigrant issues, with songs such as We Trying to Stay Alive (an adaptation of The Bee Gees’s Stayin ‘Alive song) and November’s Gone Till.
His solo career was characterized by many phenomena, in addition to the second album he made such as The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book (2000), third album, Masquerade, and subsequent albums. He had joined the America: A Tribute to Heroes concert with Bob Marley’s song, Redemption Song for the September 11, 2001 event.
Jean also wrote songs for the soundtrack of the documentary THE AGRONOMIST, GHOST OF CITE SOLEIL
POLITICAL
In 2005, Jean founded the Yele Haiti Foundation which provides scholarships for 3,600 children in Haiti after Hurricane Jeanne befell them. In the second year, more aid was channeled to Haiti for the cost of education in five regions.
This foundation had experienced suspicion from the tax authorities, because there were funds allegedly entered into Jean’s account. But this was denied by the president of Yele Haiti, who stated that all funds were used for the benefit of Haiti.
Jean is very active in supporting his home country, by paying attention to social issues and providing guidance for Haitians to rebuild their country.
In 2010, to be exact on August 5, 2010, Jean signed a form that validated him as a presidential candidate for Haiti. The reason Jean put forward for his candidacy was a call to serve his country.