International recording star Wyclef Jean is the focus of this week’s Footage Fa Dayz.
We take you back to 1999 in the clip, which features Wyclef at Studio 54, during the 2nd Annual Yahoo Awards in 1999.
Clef and artists like Public Enemy, Seal performed during the evening, which concluded with a 30 minute jam session featuring the artist formerly known as Prince, backed by former band members of Sly & The Family Stone and Maceo Parker’s band.
Representatives for Yahoo! said that this particular event marked the first time that “all of the key players involved in the online music movement — people with real influence — were able to come together in one forum to celebrate those pioneers who are leading the charge in this revolution.”
This clip was shot before The Fugees officially broke up, as Wyclef revealed that the group was working on their third group album, although there was internal friction.
“Right about now the next Fugees album is coming next summer, my album [The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book] coming out April Fools day…It’s like the Knicks or Chicago bulls, there’s always gonna be beef on the team. But when it’s time to go out and play basketball, we all gonna go out and make that 40 million….I’m looking forward to it, Lauryn is on tour right now, but when they are done, all they gotta do is ‘holla holla‘ like Ja Rule says.”
Wyclef has been in the rap game since 1994, when The Fugees dropped their debut album, Blunted on Reality.
Their follow up album, The Score was released in 1996 on Ruffhouse Records (AllHipHop’s CEO Grouchy Greg was an intern at the label during this period) and sold over 18 million copies worldwide.
Wyclef dropped his critically acclaimed solo album The Carnival a year later and hasn’t look back.
Although internal problems caused the demise of The Fugee’s, Wyclef is still more active than ever.
He recently partnered with Timberland to create his own line of boots to benefit children in Haiti, in addition to going back to college to earn his degree in music theory.
At press time, Wyclef is working on his seventh solo album, tentatively titled Music Theory.
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