Carnegie Hall

Haiti’s music reflects the different groups that have lived on the island, melding French, Spanish, and African influences. Of the many styles of Haitian music, perhaps the most popular and culturally significant is compas, a complex dance music combining African rhythms and European ballroom dancing within a quintessentially Haitian aesthetic. In French, it is called “compas direct”; the music’s pivotal force is its pulsating rhythm.

Emeline Michel, known as “the Joni Mitchell of Haiti,” began singing with a gospel choir in Gonaïves, Haiti, where she spent her childhood. After studying at the Detroit Jazz Center, she returned to Haiti where her career blossomed. Now based in New York City, Emeline is known as a respected voice for social issues concerning women and children worldwide. She writes her music in both English and Haitian Creole, in a style that fuses pop, jazz, the blues, and, of course, compas.