Michael Brun, Planetary Haiti
Born and raised in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Michael Brun moved to the USA in the early 2000’s to study medicine, and ended up deejaying at Coachella in 2014. That could have been the highlight of his rising career as an Electronic Dance Music artist, but Michael saw it as a missed opportunity. It also was an awakening: to find his future as an artist, he needed to go back to the many sounds of Haiti, and bring them to the world. And what better place to start that new mission than New York City?
All photos by Jérôme Viger-Kohler
NOUVEAU YORK: There has been a lot of tension in Haiti in recent days. As an ambassador of Haitian music and culture, what’s your outlook on today’s situation in the country?
MICHAEL BRUN: Haiti has been through a lot of turmoil since its inception. After the Haitian revolution, the country was severely sanctioned by most of the western world, which led to a lot of the economic issues that we face today. When combined with corruption, it created a lot of problems for our people. But despite the tumultuous history, there has been a lot of beauty and hope. From the creation of Jazz music in New Orleans, to revolutions across Latin America and the Caribbean, Haitians have been instrumental in the development of the region. Haiti has a lot more to offer the world and there is still hope, even in the dark moments.
NY: What makes you optimistic?
MB: Speaking to the youth and seeing how many amazing ideas and goals people have. There is a passion to uplift the homeland that is deeply rooted. So many Haitians have seen their ancestors suffer and want to see things change.
NY: While facing severe political, economic and health hardships, do Haitian people still find relief in music?
MB: Music and Haiti go hand in hand since the beginning. It’s a form of relief, but also a form of communication, protest and spirituality.
NY: You’ve been based in NYC for three years and you live in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Being stuck in the city, did you appreciate your neighborhood differently?
MB: I had just moved to a new place right before the pandemic started, so it all felt brand new to me. That helped a lot with feeling inspired despite being home for so long. I also did spend a lot of time finding local restaurants and grocery stores in my neighborhood to support. Overall, I really love New York and my neighborhood is very diverse, so I feel like I learn something new daily.
“Haiti and New York are very similar when it comes to the melting pot of cultures and sounds.”
NY: You’ve been raised in Port-au-Prince and have been exposed as a child and teenager to all the different styles of Haitian music, but it is the rise of the internet and the blogs in the 2000’s, that really inspired you to become a music producer. How do you explain it? Was it a generational thing?
MB: A big part of it came from a mixture of my parents’ background and my exposure to the internet. The combination of traditional Haitian music, 70’s and 80’s influences from my parents with electronic music and rap and R&B from the internet gave me a sense of curiosity. I wanted to hear as much as I possibly could and create my own fusions. A lot of artists today have a similar fusion of tastes. That’s why genres seem to be more borderless every day.
NY: You started making music at 15, and your career took off in the early 2010’s, first as an Electronic Dance Music producer and DJ, an “EDM wunderkind” as Time Out put it. But you didn’t stick to that formula very long and brought your Haitian roots in the game, through your music, your collaborations, your label Kid Coconut and your party series Bayo. Was there a specific moment when you decided that was the way you wanted to go?
MB: One of the big realizations for me was around the time I played Coachella in 2014. I was playing in the Sahara tent opposite Outkast at the Main Stage, and as you can imagine everyone was at the Main Stage [laughs]. People did end up coming back to my tent, but I felt like I had failed. In a way, I felt that I had not developed myself enough to be at that stage and compete with these other huge artists. I had a lot of work to do in order to learn more about what I wanted my music to mean. And what I wanted to represent as an artist. It forced me to look within, and I learned a lot about myself in the process. That’s when I started taking more risks and exploring my heritage and story for my sounds. I never looked back.
“I just remember New York being everything I had imagined it would be.”
NY: That also happened around the time you visited NYC for the first time, in your early 20’s. What first strong impressions do you remember?
MB: I just remember it being everything I had imagined it would be, from movies and TV. This huge city is filled with stories and opportunities.
NY: You once said “Haiti is just the melting pot of the world.” Do you think New York can still be called ‘a melting pot’?
MB: In some ways Haiti and New York are very similar when it comes to the melting pot of cultures and sounds. That’s why a lot of Haitians gravitated to NY.
NY: Before the pandemic, your Bayo party series were a huge success. From a block party in Port-au-Prince, it went to be sold out shows in Brooklyn and around the US.
MB: Bayo is our way of capturing all of the sights, sounds and vibes that make Haiti such a beautiful place and bring them to the world. When we did the first few block parties in Haiti, everyone from the artists to the guests had such a great time. It really felt like a family. So I tried my best to bring that same spirit to every Bayo show as well.
NY: What did you learn while touring with the Bayo parties?
MB: The biggest lesson was that if you create something as a community with a true sense of passion and heart, people will connect with it at a very deep level.
“I want to show some of the diversity in global sounds that have come from the African Diaspora. ”
NY: You’re just releasing a new EP called “Melanin” and the opening song is about summer in New York…
MB: This was the first song I finished in quarantine! The singer Kah-Lo is actually my neighbor and we had been talking about how we wanted to create a song that could resonate with how everyone was feeling in quarantine. We wanted to bring the good vibes to everyone! Kah-Lo is originally from Nigeria but fuses everything from 70’s funk to 90’s hip hop into her flows and singing.
NY: Tell us about the other featured artists.
MB: Shirazee is originally from Benin, but now lives in New York and has that fusion of R&B, pop and Afrobeat in his singing. Shay Lia is based in Montreal but creates R&B that is fused with her African roots to create something that is uniquely hers. Paul Beaubrun is from Haiti and merges Haitian traditional folk music with blues, reggae and rock. And Barbatuques in Brazil takes all the vocal percussion sounds from traditional African music and combines it with modern jazz.
NY: That’s a melting pot!
MB: The goal was to show some of the diversity in global sounds that have come from the African Diaspora. It’s a really eclectic combination of artists and I’m so proud to be able to bring them all together in one project.
Michael Brun “Melanin” is out now.
Michael Picks Five New York Classics
A Tribe Called Quest, “Electric Relaxation” (1994)
“I remember putting this song on as a kid and being able to visualize the NY and Brooklyn I recognized from music videos and films. I wouldn’t end up visiting until my early 20s but I knew I wanted to be there. Subways, basketball courts, busy intersections filled with people and loud music and yet a sense of peacefulness and tranquility through the chaos.”
Mary J Blige, “Family Affair” (2001)
“I think a lot of late 90’s and early 2000’s music videos tried to capture the feeling and vibe that ‘Family Affair’ exudes. To me, it represents the perfect night out with great friends and even better vibes, the pre- party anthem that feels the most New York.”
Maxwell, “Ascension (Don’t Ever Wonder)” (1996)
“Ascension makes me think of the more sophisticated side of the city. It feels expensive and luxurious without losing its edge. Romantic, patient and sexy while also being energetic. New York is a city filled with nuance and I think this song captures it.”
Willie Colón, “La Murga” (1970)
“You can’t spend a day in Brooklyn without hearing salsa, bachata or reggaeton playing out of someone’s car. It’s those pockets of intact culture across the city that make NY so special. And as far salsa goes, La Murga is one of my all time favorites.”
Dennis Ferrer, “Hey Hey” (2010)
“Club culture and NY go hand in hand, and nothing transports me to a great club show quite like Hey Hey. There’s something about the simplicity of the beat matched with the soulful vocals that make this feel timeless.”
