Nathaniel Stewart/Freelance Photographer
Wyclef Jean performs at last summer's 'Fully Loaded' concert at James Bond Beach, Oracabessa, St. Mary.

Reprinted from The Voice

Lead Fugees rapper Wyclef Jean was the first member of the group to embark on a solo career and he proved ambitious and eclectic on his own. As the Fugees hung in limbo, Wyclef became hip hop's unofficial multicultural conscience. a seemingly omnipresent activist, he assembled or participated in numerous high-profile charity benefit shows for a variety of causes, including aid for his native Haiti.

Wyclef's political consciousness also informed his recordings, which fused hip hop with as many different styles of music as he could get his hands on. In addition to his niche as hip hop's foremost global citizen, Clef was also a noted producer and remixer who worked with an impressive array of pop, R&B and hip hop talent, including Whitney Houston, Santana and Destiny's Child, among many others. With no Fugees reunion in sight, Wyclef is continuing to focus on his solo projects, which include a new album, Memoirs of an Immigrant, and helping aid his hometown of Haiti.

Voice: So let's get right into your new album ...

Wyclef Jean: Well, you know how Carlos Santana has Supernatural and Quincy Jones has Back On The Block? Well, this is Wyclef Jean, Memoirs of an Immigrant. This is the song-writing EP that everybody has been waiting for, where I go ahead and put all this mad music together and then find the sickest cast to perform on a piece of music. It's crazy!

Voice: You've collaborated with so many people in your time. Collaboration-wise, what are we to expect on this record?

WJ: I won't really call them collaborations. Collaborations often occur when you call someone and be like 'yeah, let's collab'. With this album, I already had the vibes written and the energy in place and I just went and found a believable cast. So you can expect Wyclef and T.I. on a track. T.I. comes in over a guitar that Wyclef is playing. Wyclef sings on the right side of the speaker whilst T.I rhymes on the left side. Every time I sing a line, he rhymes a line - it's sick! We also have Chamillionaire on a joint called Immigration, 'cause it's a serious topic back home in Haiti, and of course, the return of Mary J and Wyclef with the 911 everyone is waiting for. Then you have Clef and Shakira rhythm, which is a new sound I've come up with called the Columbian Swing. It's a sound that has a bit of an Indian twang to it. It's mad, trust me.

V: You and T.I. seem to have struck up a real friendship ...

WJ: Yeah, he is one of my co-executive producers for this album. As a producer, I get to bond with great artistes. The bond just came naturally between me and T.I. We just clicked.

V: I'm definitely looking forward to hearing what you and Mary J have come up with this time around.

WJ: Yeah, we definitely have a musical chemistry. This is the one everyone has been waiting for and I think it will have been worth the wait.

V: You've also worked with Akon. Why did you choose 'Sweetest Girl' as the first single from the album?

WJ: The music game is like a game of chess. Akon and I go back in the days of the Fugees. He is kind of like my little brother. He even flew 26 hours to come a do the video. It's like I'm from Haiti and I have a style and he is from Africa (Senegal) and he has his style. When I heard his sound, heard his flow, I knew that we had to work together at some point. For me, the first joint had to be perfect and feel right. We both had to do a record together so people can understand the swagger. Think of it as Haiti with Senegal. We also have Weezy from New Orleans. It was the best of swaggers put together, but on a record where we can actually sing and you can feel the emotion. It's some real stuff being talked about.

V: Do you consider Lil Wayne the best rapper out there?

WJ: He is definitely one of the best. His work ethic is probably the best right now bar none. He is definitely killing it right now.

V: In the digital age where more 'ringtone' music and disposable songs seem to be in fashion, do you worry you will find it hard to stay relevant?

WJ: Well, I tested the waters with the Shakira track (Hips Don't Lie) and that did well. So I think I'll be OK (Laughs).

V: You have been in the music business for so many years now. How do you feel about its current state?

WJ: I mean the business changes. Things may change, but the struggle and drama people go through is still going on. As long as I focus on my part and what I bring too the music industry, I don't really worry about whatever else is going on.

V: Your last two albums haven't done so well commercially as some of your previous work. Why do you think that is?

WJ: Every album is a reflection of what I was going through. You know what I mean? When I did Masquerade I had just lost my father, so then after that I did The Preacher's Son. Everything I do usually appeals to the masses but those two albums I think were kind of therapy for me and dealt with personal demons that I was going through.

V: I know that your late dad was a man of the church. I'm assuming that had a whole heap of inspiration on you also...

WJ: Yeah definitely, with my father being a minister. Pastor's kids are supposed to be the worst kids, but don't think that because my Dad's a minister that I won't kill you, I'll kill you! What he did was he showed me spirituality, which is the most important thing. You can have everything, but if you don't have no spirituality and no culture, money doesn't equal respect and culture. He taught me the spiritual side of it. The spiritual side is to know your culture and where you're from. Without him I probably wouldn't be here. I'd be lost, definitely.