Wyclef Jean
The singer on his Haitian childhood and suburban dadhood.
by Tammy La Gorce
July 16, 2008
A lot of celebrities have recently directed their charitable concerns toward Africa. Are other parts of the world, like Haiti, being overlooked?
Man, Haiti has always been overlooked. It's only a hundred miles off the coast of the richest nation in the world, but there's so little known about its challenges. And the media paints a terrible picture of the violence and the people in Haiti a lot of the time. Africa has a lot of concerns, too. It's not about picking one over the other. But we should have equal concern about a country that has resources, that is so close to home, and is only ten million people in population. It shouldn't take a lot, so much, to move forward.
You're busy: Carnival Vol. II, with a rainbow of guests, came out earlier this year, and you're working on a new album. Does your schedule allow for day-to-day involvement with Yele Haiti and/or the immunization campaign?
I'm still promoting [Carnival II]. And I'm always recording for myself and others, plus I'm producing a lot right now. I am in with Shakira working on new stuff as we speak. And I was recently in the studio with a new artist I like named Jazmine Sullivan — she's on J Records — plus Estelle and John Legend. I'm going to be working with Pink and T.I. in the next month, too. I give as much to Yele Haiti and the immunization program as I can, when I can.
You and your wife, Marie Claudinette Pierre-Jean, adopted your three-year-old daughter, Angelina, from America. Why did you choose to adopt an American child rather than a Haitian one?
Angelina is half-Haitian. She was a child that needed love and a life.
How would you describe your parenting style?
Loving and giving of myself and my time are the things I try to do most. No particular style.
You live in New Jersey, deep in suburbia. Are you and your wife part of the local stroller brigade?
"I think a child can have a productive and enriching childhood if they're given the resources to succeed in life."
Does Angelina do gymnastics classes at the Y, and do you make small talk with the other dads around the sandbox at the local playground?
Angelina is involved in a lot of activities from ballet to art, and she likes singing. She loves the studio too.
Does Angelina listen to kids' music? Does she have any favorite artists?
She mostly loves Nickelodeon. She loves SpongeBob and Dora the Explorer. She likes children's programming in Spanish too. She's learning to speak it.
Can a suburban American childhood compare, culturally, to a childhood spent in a country like Haiti? Are our kids getting enough exposure to other cultures?
I think a child can have a productive and enriching childhood if they're given the resources to succeed in life — a stable family environment, etc. — no matter where they are. But children are very resilient.
©2008 Tammy La Gorce and Babble
About the Author
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Tammy La Gorce is a freelance entertainment writer living in New Jersey with her son and daughter. Her work regularly appears in The New York Times, GRAMMY and other magazines. |
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