Saturday, May 20, 2017
The Soul of Haiti: Acoustic Performance by Internationally Acclaimed Haitian Songstress Emeline Michel
Emeline Michel is known for fusing pop, jazz, blues, and traditional Haitian rhythms into deeply moving, joyful music delivered with a charismatic live show.
Location: Busboys and Poets (Hyattsville – 5331 Baltimore Ave, Hyattsville, MD 20781)
Time: 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Cost: Free
Emeline Michel
Vocalist, songwriter, and performer Emeline Michel is internationally acclaimed for fusing pop, jazz, blues, and traditional Haitian rhythms to create deeply moving and joyful music, delivered with a charismatic live show. A master entertainer, Michel has been sharing her message with audiences across Europe and the Americas for more than 20 years, including appearances at New York’s Carnegie Hall, The United Nations, Ontario’s Luminato Festival, Montreal International Jazz Festival, New Orleans Jazz Fest, Tasmania’s Ten Days On The Island, Zimbabwe’s Harare International Arts Festival, and on MTV’s Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief fundraiser. Hailed by the New York Times as a “diplomat of music” and “the dancing ambassador with a voice serene and warm like the breeze,” Michel first began singing with the gospel choir in the church of Gonaïves, Haiti. She later studied at the Detroit Jazz Center and returned to Haiti, where her career blossomed. Now based in New York City, she runs her own production company, Production Cheval de Feu, and is currently touring in support of her long-awaited 10th album Quintessence. A remarkable blend of spirited songs, the album captures the reverence and gratitude for the present moment and showcases Michel’s virtuoso vocal, singing in Haitian Creole, French and English, with finger-picked guitars, soulful backing vocals, a children’s choir, Haitian percussion, lush strings, playful trumpet and accordion lines.