#56 - MUSIC SPECIAL: The Summer of Heartfelt Refrains, with Durkheim
Durkheim's truths, Haiti in step with the world, Mr. Pass's provocations, Kenscoff still tense, Pacot refuses to give in, and old reflexes for a new president
When everything is uncertain, love remains steadfast. With his powerful choruses, Durkheim has established himself as one of the leading voices of summer music, as featured in this special edition. All this and more in issue #55 of HAITI WEEKLY by DÈYÈ MÒN ENFO.
“Etienne and Jean-Daniel visited Carleton-sur-Mer at the FIJC and motivated me to reconnect with current events in Haiti. And to obtain reliable information from the field, from the Peyi. Mesi anpil!” - Valerie L.
Sommaire #56
Durkheim's Truths
Haiti in Step with the World
Music Video of the Week - Yon timoun legliz by Mr. Pass
Kenscoff Still Under Pressure
Pacot Refuses to Give In
New President, Old Habits
Press Reviews
Durkheim's Truths
Singer Durkheim has established himself as one of the most popular voices in the country. In his mid-twenties, he just finished perfoming a series of mini-concerts in several major cities outside of Port-au-Prince. We met with him before his final performance in Jacmel.
Originally from Croix-des-Bouquets, a suburb north of Port-au-Prince, he sings about the joys and sorrows of love and friendship, and the ups and downs of romantic relationships.
“It's a choice to reveal the dark side of my life and speak out about things that many people keep to themselves,” he confides. “Whether or not I experienced it, whether or not it hurt me, I use it to share all these emotions. I want to show that even artists can suffer.”
Read our full interview (in French) with him about his career and life in Sherbrooke, Quebec, which was published in La Presse de Montréal.
Durkheim's musical selection:
“He's a young artist, and this is the song I'm listening to the most right now.”
HAITI MIXTAPE SESSIONS #4 - Best Of 2025
Les plus grands succès haïtiens de l’année, et nos coups de cœur musicaux, mixés par DJ Gadon Blan (aka ECP), au resto-bar Vue sur Mer, à Cayes-Jacmel, le 19 juillet 2025.
Haiti in Step with the World
Following a successful year in 2023 with albums by Zafèm and Medjy, compas has regained momentum this year, particularly due to the success of Joé Dwèt Filé. For 70 years, compas has inspired a multitude of styles in the Caribbean and beyond. With over 100 million views on YouTube, the song “4 Kampé” has resonated in Haiti, France, and beyond. Perhaps it has finally achieved the international recognition the genre has long deserved.
Without a doubt, the most popular song in Haiti this summer is Voye dlo, a collaboration between Yani Martelly, Tonymix, and three guest singers.
With its frenetic rhythms, raboday has been less prominent in the charts this year. The crisis, which does not lend itself well to the jerky, intense percussion of the genre, is undoubtedly a factor, though some tracks have still made their mark.
The influence of Africa remains strong, with Afro-pop and amapiano continuing to lead the way. These styles often blend with compas, resulting in popular fusions.
The diaspora also influences music production. For example, Durkheim and Troubleboy discuss the cost of living, and Loji Baby recounts his encounters with immigration police.
The national crisis is the focus of many songs that describe a population caught between leaders accused of corruption and armed groups capable of paralyzing both cities and the economy.
Music Video of the Week
Yon timoun legliz - Mr. Pass
Singer Mr. Pass has released an equally provocative song accompanied by a very daring music video. In the song, he tells the story of a “church girl” who is ready for all kinds of bedroom adventures, even inviting a friend to join her.
Accompanied by a catchy tune, he repeats the words of the young woman he met and brought to his hotel, where she “sang into the microphone” as if she were in a choir:
“I am a child of the church.”
Kenscoff Still Under Pressure
Our team observed that the the town of Kenscoff and its neighbor Furcy remain on high alert. The authorities are still in control of the center, but on Friday morning, armed groups broke through the lines further up the road to Furcy, attacking and setting fire to two armored vehicles belonging to the Multinational Security Mission. Kenyan police officers were injured.
As of late last Thursday morning, police had regained control of most of the area, though tension remained in the Teleco sector. The police were also patrolling certain areas of Furcy where the police station had recently been set on fire.
“The situation would quickly be under control with one or two helicopters” said a police officer at the scene.
On August 3, a few hundred meters away, eight people, including a child and an Irish national, were kidnapped from an orphanage in Kenscoff. They are still being held by their captors.
Five UNICEF employees, including a French national, were released in Port-au-Prince after spending three weeks in captivity. The employees had been kidnapped while distributing medicine in a high-risk area. According to a source familiar with the case, their relatives paid a ransom of several thousand dollars. This is believed to be the first kidnapping of UN employees in Haiti.
Pacot Refuses to Give In
The Pacot neighborhood in Port-au-Prince is holding firm against attacks. As we reported, local brigades and police have regained control of the area around the Prince Hotel on Avenue N, a contested sector since late July.
However, police operations and self-defense groups have been active in recent days, and several drones have exploded near 4th Street. On Monday afternoon, drones exploded again in the vicinity.
Recently, more shopkeepers have appeared in the Pacot and Bas-Turgeau neighborhoods, at the Tifou intersection in Bois-Verna, and in certain areas of Champ-de-Mars. This is a sign of a slight return to normalcy, despite ongoing tensions.
New President, Old Habits
Last Thursday, in front of the Villa d'Accueil in Port-au-Prince, some protesters covered their faces from the cameras while showing support for Laurent St-Cyr, the new president of the Presidential Transition Council and businessman.
“I was just wiping my face,” one of them assured us.
But the message was clear when the photos circulated: matching T-shirts and printed signs... According to several critics, this type of staging is reminiscent of old political tactics where money is used to manufacture popular mobilization.
At that moment, a lavish ceremony was taking place at the unofficial center of presidential power. There were carefully selected guests, chauffeurs in the parking lot, and glasses of champagne—all in a country in the midst of a historic crisis.
As usual, the reshuffling has begun with preparations for a new Council of Ministers and the appointment of a new Director General of Police. Soon, no doubt, there will be new directors throughout the state apparatus as well. The new team in power seems eager to put its people in place quickly.
At a Glance : Regards d’ailleurs in Les Cayes
Following stops in Cap-Haïtien and Jacmel, the Théâtre Créole company presented the fourth edition of its Regard d'ailleurs festival in Les Cayes in the spring.
In closing, the concert-theater production Âme et lit, led by musician Darlin Johancy Michel and several actors and actresses, explored the crisis facing the country. The event, which took place at the Antistress club, concluded five days of workshops and performances, uniting artists and audiences on the same stage.
DÈYÈ MÒN ENFO’s team
Photojournalists: Francillon Laguerre, Sonson Thelusma, Andoo Lafond, Milot Andris, Patrick Payin, Steevy Andris, Ketlain Difficile
Community manager: Steven Andris
Editorial board: Etienne Côté-Paluck, Jean Elie Fortiné, Jean-Paul Saint-Fleur
Interns: Wilky Andris, Donley Jean Simon
Special collaboration: Stéphanie Tourillon-Gingras, Mateo Fortin Lubin
Media partners: Centre à la Une, J-COM, Nord-Est Info
Institutional partners: Kay Fanm, Mouka.ht
How Does Your Contribution Help?
Your monthly support helps to finance the production and pay the salaries of the DÈYÈ MÒN ENFO staff in the communities of Cité-Soleil, Port-au-Prince and Cayes-Jacmel. In addition, donations are regularly distributed for medical expenses, school fees and other emergencies in these communities.
Press Reviews
Press Review - Music
Plus de 100 millions de vues pour « 4 Kampé » – Le Nouvelliste
70 ans de compas : « Merci Nemours », dit Lionel Benjamin – Le Nouvelliste
Destinoble Barrateau : le maître oublié derrière les débuts de Nemours Jean-Baptiste et la naissance du compas direct – Le Nouvelliste
Infinity : Gabel vise l’infini avec son septième album – Le National
Press Review - Performing Arts (music)
Kreyòl La et Vayb défient la météo – Le Nouvelliste
Beau clap de fin pour Haïti en Folie à Montréal – Le Nouvelliste
Compas : 70 ans d’histoire célébrés sur la Place Boyer – Le Nouvelliste
70 ans du compas : Port-au-Prince danse avec T-Vice – Le Nouvelliste
Septen célèbre ses 77 ans au Cap-Haïtien – Le Nouvelliste
Festival Haïti en folie : Boukan Ginen et le regard du troisième œil – Leoir
Press Rw - Visual Arts
Clarens Siffroy décroche son « Visa pour l'image » – Le Nouvelli
Press Review - Culture
Port-au-Prince : le bain collectif en piscine, une nouvelle pratique de loisirs – Le National
Handgod Abraham n'est plus à la tête de Wikimédia Haïti – Le National
Press Review - Literature
Entre stéréotypes et silences : critique du roman Les Villages de Dieu d’Émmelie Prophète et sa représentation des marges haïtiennes – Le Nouvelliste
Lancement officiel des « Vendredis de la DNL » – Le Nouvelliste
Écrire pour se choisir : le combat intime de Zafia – Le Nouvelliste
Press Review - Gender and Women's Rights
presented by KAY FANM
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