Details below…check out the interview after the jump…
Suite903’s worldly reach has zoned in on Haiti with an interview with Rosemond Jolissant. A past winner of Digicel Stars (the American Idol of Haiti), he is one of the most promising artists coming out of the country. We sat around, chatted (in CREOLE no less), and then he played some music for us. Besides getting over his shock of flying to New York in the middle of snowicane, from a country where the average temperature is 85 everyday, he was pretty chill and super sweet. He was on a trip to raise funds for the organization that he works with, SOIL, a cause now spotlighted in the media due to the devastating earthquake, which he experienced. We were glad to have him come by and cheer up the office on a dreary Friday evening in the midst of his hectic schedule. Don’t get it twisted though, this kid is the one of the most laid back people we’ve ever met. You’d never guess he’s flying all over the world, recording albums with international musicians, raising funds for his country and still going to high school…
Tonight at 6pm, the Hostos Center for the Arts and Culture will be hosting the Half and Half Panel discussion on exploring Dominican and Haitian identities. The discussion sounds like it will be pretty interesting and it will bring up some fiery topics that exist between the two nationalities. Race, economics, politics and colonial legacy will all be on the agenda. It’s a free event so if you can make it out.
While Haiti’s problems are far from gone, and while lives of people are still far from what it used to be, life still moves forward. One of the best things is despite all the hardships certain staples of Haitian culture won’t die - namely art and music. I threw up a report a from the NY Times a few weeks ago about the hardships of Haitian artists. This NY Times video shows how artist are still pushing on, making music, painting and surviving.
Here is a crazy story I heard about. A Haitian family that survived the quake in Haiti, was relocated to Chile through one of their sons who lives in Chile. The son who is part of a Haitian reggaeton band, Reggaeton Boys, had connections with the Chilean Embassy in Haiti. They arrived in Chile on the 23 of January to only be in the middle of another quake on February 28th. While the family survived again this was another shock to them.
And if you were thinking what I was you must be wondering about a the Haitian Reggaeton group, I added a video on them to confirm things a bit.
With 2010 World Cup just 99 days away, ESPN has reopened an old topic about Joe Gaetjens the hero during the US victory over England in the 1950 World Cup. The article tries into kill all the misconceptions that were portrayed about Joe Gaetjens and show him as he truly was. In the movie “Game of Their Lives”, he was portrayed as a voodoo fanatic when he was actually Catholic. There are mangled facts about Gaetjens family origins and the English media trying to call his goal a fluke as well as his mysterious demise.
Joe Gaetjens was not Belgian. And his father wasn’t, either.
His name sounded Flemish. The Flemings are the Dutch-speaking half of Belgium. Considering the tidal wave of Flemish immigrants that washed over North America in the 19th century, the assumption that Gaetjens was of Belgian descent held credence. But Gaetjens, in spite of the ‘-jens’ suffix, is not a common name in Flanders.
Genealogic research shows that Joe’s great-grandfather, Thomas, migrated to Haiti from Bremen, in northern Germany, where the Gaetjens name is rather common. (A close variation on Gaetjens — Gätjens — is also oft-heard just north of there, over the Danish border.) Thomas arrived in Haiti shortly after 1825 (when France officially recognized Haiti’s independence) and married Leonie Dejoie, whose father was a general and had played a part in Haiti’s self-determination. That connection opened a path to prosperity for the Gaetjens family…
Joe Gaetjens did not practice voodoo.
“Absolutely not!” shouts his indignant younger sister, Mireille, reached in Puerto Rico.
“The Game of Their Lives,” the 2005 movie about the historic upset, had been ludicrously inaccurate. The film made light-skinned Gaetjens, played by dark-skinned Jimmy Jean-Louis, out to be some sort of voodoo nut.
The Gaetjens family was appalled. In real life, Gaetjens was Catholic, like most Haitians, and went to church every Sunday…
After the U.S.-England game, a barrage of excuses was blasted from the England camp. It had been too hot. Travel had been strenuous. But this one would stick: Gaetjens’ goal had been a lucky one.
All Americans and most English present on the scene dispute that.
This weekend will be great for Wyclef Jean, as he’s set to receive The Harvard Foundation’s most prestigious medal at their annual Cultural Rhythms award ceremony on Feb. 27. Check out the info below…
…“His contributions to music and distinguished history of creativity have been appreciated by people throughout the world,” said S. Allen Counter, director of the Harvard Foundation, “and he is admired worldwide for his humanitarian efforts on behalf of the people of Haiti.”…
…He is widely known for his humanitarian work through the Yéle Haiti Foundation, which promotes sports and the arts in Haiti. This support includes thousands of annual scholarships, soccer programs for at-risk youth, and free outdoor films in neighborhoods without electricity. The organization distributes food to communities in need throughout Haiti and mobilizes emergency disaster relief, including its current efforts in response to the devastating earthquake in the Port-au-Prince area.
The Harvard Foundation, the University’s center for intercultural arts and sciences initiatives, honors the nation’s most acclaimed artists and scientists each year. Previous awards have been presented to such artists as Sharon Stone, Andy Garcia, Will Smith, Matt Damon, Halle Berry, Jackie Chan, Denzel Washington, Salma Hayek, and Herbie Hancock….
Check out the full article on his honor and purchase tickets to the event, if you’re in the area, here: Haitian-American artist honored.
Nike has joined the outpouring of support after Haiti’s earthquake with a tee shirt designed by Haitian-American students in Florida. Check out the details below…
Over a month has passed since the devastating earthquake the shook the small island of Haiti and captivated the entire world. Many countries were quick to lend hands, but in dire situations like these, emotional support is also welcome. Nike Basketball took a trip to Forest Park Elementary School in Southern Florida, a school with a 60% Haitian population, to create a piece of artwork meant sent a message of hope, love and empathy to the Haitian people. The tag line reads ‘Kinbe Pa Lage’, which translates to ‘Hold on tight, don’t let go’. The artwork was placed on a Nike Basketball t-shirt, and was placed for sale at $25 a piece at Nike retailers, with all proceeds going to Mercy Corps and Architecture for Humanity, two of Nike’s partners in the Haitian Relief Effort.
Click the images below for a few more shots of the shirt….
Carnival is jumping off around the Caribbean and South America but unfortunately not this year in Haiti. Due to the earthquake it has been canceled sadly enough and that also brings more hardship for artists and mask makers that prepare pieces for Carnival. The NY Times has a story about the plight of one artist in Jacmel.
It’s likely that by now you’ve heard about the “We Are The World” remake commissioned by Quincy Jones and Wyclef Jean, especially since Dom posted a bit about it last week. Well, the single is now ready for the world. Check out the video, featuring everyone you can think of, below…
The single is available for purchase now, with all proceeds going towards the relief efforts in Haiti. Click here to buy it on iTunes.
Another cover that hasn’t gotten as much press as the “We Are…” effort is the Simon Cowell-organized “Everybody Hurts” charity single. Check out that video, featuring some of the best artists in the UK, below….
Last Friday BET presented their fundraiser for Haiti. It consisted of a slew of artists like Wyclef, Nas, Damian Marley, Akon, Mary J Blige, Busta Rhymes and more. Here are some of the performances from the night.
