Wyclef Jean

. Kweller's second solo effort, On My Way, has attempted to match the modest but well-received popularity of Sha Sha while creating a more mature and subdued sound. In 2005, Jean earned a Golden Globe for his track entitled "Million Voices" featured on the soundtrack to the film Hotel Rwanda. The album grew in popularity with a grassroot effort with his website and a promotion group called TeamBK, which promoted word-of-mouth advertising. A freewheeling album that is something of a return to his Caribbean roots, most of the songs on the album are in his native language of Haitian Creole or Kreyòl. The record kept many of the familiar sounds of Nirvana, but also worked in other pop music influences such as Weezer and Ben Folds. In 2004, he released his fifth album, entitled Sak Pasé Presents: Welcome to Haiti (Creole 101) (released in the United States by Koch Records). The title track reconciles his past career efforts with Radish and the difficulty of finding an identity as a 20 year-old artist beginning a musical career for the second time.

His fourth album was The Preacher's Son, an album that Wyclef considered a continuation of his first album, Carnival. Kweller began his solo career with his 2002 debut Sha Sha. Jean's third album, Masquerade, was released in 2002 and sold well, though critics frequently panned it. Regardless of a much-hyped beginning, which included appearances on Conan O'Brien and David Letterman, Radish failed to strike big success with either its first record Dizzy or its sophomore effort Restraining Bolt. The critical reception was mixed, with many calling the album scattershot and too far-ranging to be cohesive. However, the band was dismissed by critics as little more than an imitation of Nirvana with the novelty of an extremely young lead vocal-guitarist (Kweller was in his teens for the entire existence of the band). Nonetheless, Kweller and his two bandmates, bassist Bryan Blur and drummer John Kent, were signed to a major record label in 1995 by Mercury Records. Blige. The band grew in popularity in the Dallas, Texas music scene from its formation in 1993.

Jean's second solo album was The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book, recorded with guests Youssou N'Dour, Earth, Wind & Fire, Kenny Rogers, The Rock and Mary J. Ben Kweller (born June 16, 1981) is an American rock musician and former lead singer of the 1990s band Radish, which was compared to Nirvana in Rolling Stone Magazine. The Fugees remained in limbo during this time, with the follow-up to The Score being continually postponed as all three members cultivated solo careers. Jean went on to work with artists including Santana, Tevin Campbell, Cypress Hill, Bounty Killer, Whitney Houston, Destiny's Child, Sublime, Simply Red, Mya, Sinéad O'Connor, Kimberly Scott, Mick Jagger, Canibus, The Black Eyed Peas and Eric Benét. The album was a major hit, as were two singles: "We Trying to Stay Alive" (adapted from The Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive") and "Gone Til November" (recorded with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra).

The album's guests included Hill and Pras along with Jean's siblings, the I Threes (back-up vocals for Bob Marley), Neville Brothers and Celia Cruz. Jean soon announced plans to begin a solo career with 1997's Wyclef Jean Presents the Carnival Featuring the Refugee All-Stars (more typically called simply The Carnival). Their eclectic follow-up, The Score, however, sold over 17 million copies worldwide and turned the trio into international superstars. The Fugees signed to Ruffhouse Records and released their debut, Blunted on Reality, but the album was panned and sold poorly.

In 1987, Jean, his cousin Prakazrel Michel (Pras) and his classmate, Lauryn Hill, formed a group called the Tranzlator Crew before becoming The Fugees. Wyclef worked as a cabdriver. Born in Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti, Jean moved to Brooklyn when he was nine, then to New Jersey, where he began playing the guitar and studying jazz in high school. Wyclef Jean (born October 17, 1972) is a Haitian-born rapper, producer and former member of the superstar hip hop trio The Fugees, known now for a series of high-profile hit singles. Clef Records Website (http://www.clefrecords.com).

J Records Website (http://www.jrecords.com). Sak Pase Records Website (http://www.sakpaserecords.net). Official Website (http://www.wyclef.com). 2004 Sak Pasé Presents: Creole 101 (Welcome to Haiti).

2003 The Preacher's Son. 2002 Masquerade. 2000 The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book. 1997 Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival Featuring the Refugee All-Stars.