CONTRIBUTORS
LINKS
INFO
BélO
w/Anakawona Dance Group, Fri., Nov. 16, 7 p.m. (reception with traditional foods, drink and entertainment), 8 p.m. (show), Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Tampa. $12.
It seems every media reference about Haiti is bad news: hurricanes, kidnapping, political upheaval, disease.
It is, after all, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The island nation recently witnessed the fury of Tropical Storm Noel. On Oct. 31, it was reported that more than 90 people were killed by severe flooding. A week later, a news story maintained that HIV was introduced to the Western Hemisphere through Haiti "in about 1966." Haiti needs to keep its U.N. peacekeepers in the country for at least several more years.
The overarching impression: Life in Haiti sucks. It's not exactly the stuff that tourism board dreams are made of.
BélO aims to alter that image.
The Haitian reggae/pop star wants his homeland looked on as fondly as any other beautiful Caribbean island, with the attendant booming tourist industry that goes with images of white sand beaches and azure waters -- like, say, Jamaica.
He's not so naïve, however, to think that a simple PR campaign is the answer to getting his nation into the pantheon of Caribbean hotspots. That's why many of his songs implore his fellow countrymen, especially the nation's youth, to trade in their guns for guitars.
"I'd like all Americans to know Haiti is a good country," BélO says. "It was the first free, independent [African-American] country in the world. We in Haiti, we are peacemakers.
"There's trouble all over the world," he continues. "Problems all over the world. [But] we have a lot of good things in our country."
BélO speaks via a weak cell-phone connection. He's in the Dominican Republic. To get his car fixed, he had to cross an international border. Such is life in Haiti.
I first contacted BélO's manager, who is in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, earlier the same day. I asked him how the city looks in the wake of Noel.
"It's very hard to tell a difference before or after," he says. "This place is always a mess."
Not in BélO's eyes.
Born Jean Bélony Murat, the 27-year-old singer came to international acclaim (except, of course, in the United States) with his debut album, Lakou Trankil. The disc earned BélO, who sings in French and Creole, the Radio France award (the equivalent of our Grammy) last year for best new artist. His music harkens to the one-drop, acoustic-guitar-based style of classic reggae, augmented with contemporary synth and amplified bass. One of the disc's most poignant songs tells the true tale of five young men dying during a failed attempt to flee Haiti for Miami.
BélO sings the words in a high, gentle voice over a softly strummed acoustic guitar. A subtle string section and flute underscore the chorus. Even without understanding a word he's singing, it's clear that the subject matter is tragic -- and personal.
"A story of five young men who took to the sea," BélO sings in French:
"To go find a fork in the road/ These young men were tired of misery/ They had to go and leave family far behind."
(Trust me, it's much prettier en francais.)
Later, after the men have been adrift for days without food or water, the one young man says he "would prefer to throw himself to the sharks" than return to Haiti.
"The cream of the country has all gone (they're all gone)," BélO sings.
When he makes his Gulf Coast debut Friday at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center as part of the Latin arts festival Arté 2007, it will be only his third appearance in the United States. (The other two were New York and Miami.)
He's recording his second album at studios both in Tampa and Miami, but insists he has no plans to leave his homeland for a brighter future here.
"I cannot change Haiti if I'm not in Haiti, so I don't want to go anywhere else," he says. "That's why on my album there's the song ['Istwa Dwol'] telling the history of five young boys who leave the country. Young Haitian people need to stay in the country. If everyone goes, Haiti will never change."
I ask BélO if he thinks the United States should be doing more to help his homeland. He pauses.
"If U.S. could do something to help Haiti, it would help both countries," he said. "[But] U.S. can't change Haiti. Only Haitians can change Haiti."
In musical style and persona, BélO takes his cue from Bob Marley, the man who single-handedly made Jamaica a hip tourist attraction despite the fact that that country isn't much safer than Haiti. When BélO walks the streets of his homeland, he's instantly recognized and asked to sign the shirts on peoples' backs. But the young musician sounds humble when discussing his role as a Haitian ambassador.
"I am not a superstar," he says. "I am a missionary. So, I'm not here to show off. My music is real, not business music. I want what Bob Marley wanted for the world: peace in the world."
And so we realize that BélO isn't just an idealist, he adds:
"Tell people my second album is going to be excellent."
COMMENTS
RE: Redefining Haiti
Posted by Greg Peters on 11.26.07 @ 03:47 PM
I met Wyclef a few years ago and he was asking me how to fix Haiti. I really admired Wyclef's determination and love for his country. He is the only Haitian artist along with Belo that I know that truly cares for his country and actually act upon it. To make proof of it, he created an organization called Yele. For that matter I told him, I will give thought to the Haiti situation and come up with concrete solutions that he can submit to the people in charge in Haiti. The first thing that I did to help is to put Haiti on the map. A lot of people do not even know where Haiti is and do not know its powerful history. I wrote a pre-script and submitted it to Hollywood. Then they developed it to a full script. My pre-script was about Haiti's independence and the life of Toussaint. The Haitian independence was a major influence to other slaves freedom in the early 1800's. My pre-scripts is now in full production in Africa with Wesley Snipes playing the role of Toussaint. The movie I believe will put Haiti on the map and hopefully in the future will help in tourism for the island. I hope the movie does the same that it did for the Mandela movie and South Africa. The second part of my contribution to Haiti is to submit concrete solutions for the country. I submitted a piece to the Miami Herald newspaper on Haiti concerning the Tortuga Project. Please read and let me know what you think of it. Perhaps, we can find a way to submit our ideas to the Preval administration or someone with power in Haiti that can make things happen. ... I am not Haitian but I can easily see a SOLUTION for Haiti. The Haitian diaspora gives 2 billion dollars per year to their relatives for survival. While this is good, it is only a temporary relief. Month after month you still have to send money to your relatives. Why not teach them how to fish instead of giving them the fish! A concrete solution for Haiti is to start small by using one of the 5 smalls islands that it owns. For example Tortuga island can be prepared for development. Haitians can organize and send money into a trustworthy fund that will manage the fund for projects for Tortuga island. For the size of Tortuga, all you would need is about 300 million dollars. You would need 7 things. 1) Roads 2) Water 3) Electricity 4) Sea Port 5) Airport 6) Trustworthy Police Force (Security) 7) Marketing plan. You would then need to market the island to multi-national companies and rich Haitians to come and open resorts, hotels, restaurants etc... You would not sell the land to companies but lease them. You would tax the companies. Local employment would be created and the taxes and tourism profits would help the rest of Haiti. Once you have enough money, you can do the same for the other 4 islands including (Navasa or Ile a Vache also named Port-Morgan, see port-morgan.com ). Port-Morgan can be used as Eco-Tourism for its natural flora and beauty. The Haitian diapora is sending 2 billion dollars per year to its relatives. Why not reach out to the international Haitian diaspora living in Miami, New York, Canada and France to donate 300 million dollars to start a project for Tortuga. That money can be collected in less than 1 year. Why wait for international aid handouts that are only creating parasites for sinecures. Why not take this plan I suggested and put it into action. Recommend the Tortuga plan to the Preval administration and start marketing it to Haitians living abroad. If Haitians truly love their country which I think they do because they are sending 2 billion dollars per year to help feed their relatives. Help them think to redirect some of that money into a fund that will help them for the future by teaching them how to fish. Furthermore, we should open up the ports in Haiti for free trade. This will lower the cost of goods in Haiti and allow free enterprise. This is the way you encourage investors to come in the country and invest agressively. For those of you who are Saint Thomases and negative. Have a little faith in the Haitian people. The money for the Tortuga project can be raised easier than you think. The Haitian diaspora is sending 2 billion dollars per year to their relatives in Haiti via primarily from money transfer such as Western Union and CAM. You guys are not using your brains fully. Think! 10% of the money sent can be redirected to a credible organization (e.g., United Nations) for specifically funding the Tortuga Project. That translates into 200 million dollars per year. For example, someone sends $100 to their love one in Haiti. $10 will be put aside for the Tortuga Project. The means are already there to force the Haitian diaspora to donate the money. All there is to do is to wake up the Haitian diaspora patriotic duty and make them understand that the Tortuga Project is a concrete solution for the entire country. Whatever organization you choose to manage the money must me very strictly accountable for it and report progress in order to avoid corruption. For those of you who do not know anything about Tortuga. It is one of the world's best places for kitesurfing. It is even better than Cabarete, in the Dominican Republic. The beaches are incredible and prestine. Preval himself has been there. But I believe they do not know how to develop the place. All there is to do is to set up a basic infrastructure. I belive that 300 million dollars is sufficient. The rest will be done by investors. It is easy to point out Haiti's problems but you have to be able to come up with concrete solutions and act on it.
RE: Redefining Haiti
Posted by Jean Claude Z. on 11.18.07 @ 09:33 PM
I am so glad to read this article about Bélo, an proud Haitian guy. I like the way that Belo is doing things because in Haiti our journalists they just don't think about what they are saying, they just say something. But him he thinks and he sings what he is feling, seeing, hearing, smelling bref! living. Unfortunately I am outside of my contry. But franckly I agree with him we have to be in haiti to help creating this changement. thaks an lot.