American rapper and hip hop producer born on October 17, 1970 in Haiti.
Wyclef Jean (born October 17, 1972 in Croix-des-Bouquets, Haïti) is an American rapper, producer, and member of the superstar hip hop trio The Fugees, known now for a series of high-profile hit singles.
Jean moved to Brooklyn, New York when he was nine, then to Northern New Jersey, where he began playing the guitar and studying jazz in his high school. In 1987, Jean, his friend (so close they told people they were cousins growing up) Prakazrel Michel (Pras) and his classmate, Lauryn Hill, formed a group called the Tranzlator Crew before becoming The Fugees. Wyclef worked as a cabdriver.
Recently he has been finding success as a collaborator - with his turn on Shakira's 2006 track 'Hips Don't Lie' hitting number one in many countries around the world.
In August of 2010, Jean announced his intent to seek the presidency of Haiti. This move came after his increasingly-high profile humanitarian work in the wake of the earthquake that devastated that nation.
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From Wikipedia:Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (Haitian Creole pronunciation: [wajkl?f ?ã], English: /?wa?kl?f ????n/; born October 17, 1972) is a Haitian musician, record producer and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country. He first received fame as a member of the acclaimed New Jersey hip hop group, the Fugees.
On August 5, 2010, Jean filed for candidacy in the 2010 Haitian presidential election.