Friday, June 24, 2016

Indie Review welcomes Emeline Michel !

Set your reminders and tune in! See ya Saturday :)
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Emeline Michel


She is the reigning Queen of Haitian Song: a captivating performer, versatile vocalist and one of the premier Haitian songwriters of her generation. She has recorded and appeared on concert stages throughout the Caribbean, Europe, and North & South America for over 20 years. Singing both in French and Haitian Creole, her nine albums, Douvanjou ka leve (May the Sun Rise), Pa gen manti nan sa (There's No Doubt), Rhum & Flamme (Rum & Flame), Tout Mon Temps (All My Time), The Very Best, Ban'm pase (Let Me Pass), Cordes et Ame (Strings and Soul), Rasin Kreyol (Creole Roots), and Reine de Cour (Queen of Hearts) have catapulted her to international acclaim.
Emeline Michel is beloved by Haitians for combining traditional rhythms with social, political and inspirational content. She is a member of a unique generation of Haitian musicians that emerged in the late 1980’s and also includes guitarist/vocalist Beethova Obas and the bands Boukman Eksperyans and Boukan Guinen. This wave of artists emphasized complex themes, conscious lyrics, and a broad palette of musical styles, including the native Haitian compas, twoubadou and rara.
Born in Gonaives, Haiti, her first experience in music was singing gospel music at the local church. After completing her education, Emeline accepted an opportunity to study at the Detroit Jazz Center and returned to Haiti as a professional musician. Emeline soon released her first album Douvanjou ka leve that featured the hit "Plezi Mize" (Pleasure in Misery) written by Beethova Obas.
Relocating to France, she became a leading musical icon, performing at venues such as the Jazz Festival of Nice and Theatre de la Ville, making numerous appearances on French television and gracing the covers of many music and culture magazines. From her new base in France, Emeline’s work quickly spread throughout the French‐speaking world, including Belgium, Africa, the French Antilles, French Guiana, Québec, as well as Chile and Japan. The album Tout Mon Temps delivered her international smash hit "A‐K‐I‐K‐O." While set to an infectious dance groove, the song called for Haiti to look past the political turmoil that has long gripped the nation and to return to a time of innocence and joy.
After being signed with several record labels in France, Canada and the U.S., Emeline formed her own production company (Production Cheval De Feu) in 1999 to gain full control of her career and artistic vision. In 2000 Emeline released Cordes et Ame (Strings and Soul), a song‐cycle centered on the theme of perseverance, featuring the sound of voice & acoustic guitars bathed in the ancient and modern rhythms of Haiti. Cordes et Ame became the fastest selling recording in Haiti and received Haiti's "Musique En Folie" citation for Best Haitian Album and Best Production for the year 2000.
In 2006, Emeline was chosen from among the multitude of talented New York‐based performers to deliver the headline performance for the 2006 Clinton Global Initiative, a conclave of over 2000 world dignitaries, thinkers, presidents and world leaders brought together by former President Bill Clinton.