It Is With Great Sorrow We Announce The Death Of 4 Members Of The Barikad Crew
Barikad Crew was founded in 2002 at Avenue Nicholas, Port-Au-Prince by a bunch of young kids who were infected by Rap music fever. Thereafter, in a Telemax Christmas competition, Barikad was highly ranked. Their 2005 meringue Carnavalesque and the video clip, n ap trip, was a big success. However for unknown reasons, Barikad could not get people or companies to sponsor their sound system and float. Far from being discouraged, Barikad kept soldiering on. By the time they released the Coupe Cloure Ban m afè m adaptation, Port-Au-Prince was already conquered. In 2006, Barikad won the ticket D'Or as the best Haitian Band.
Papa K-Tafalk, Dade, Deja-Voo, Condagana, Fantom, Izolan, Marco, Bricks, Master Sun, Young Cliff, Brital and others wrote songs that will be immortal. With a Creole flavor, Barikad Rap can be dry and wet, soft and rough, bright and dark, powerful and light, earthly and cosmic. Above all, it is an inviting music in which our kids reflect on their own reality, fears, struggles, hopes, regrets and their sense of hopelessness.
As a music rooted in a deepest region of the soul, Barikad has been the voices for the underprivileged and the mistreated. The band often packs mostly young people into large auditoriums and parks. Teenagers can easily identify to their songs and melodies.
By Melding lyrical melodies and electronics effects, Barikad has been supplying us with an engaging music that quite often takes us out of our comfort zone.
They are indirectly teaching us about our prejudices, unfairness, mentality, nonsense, environmental injustice and unnationalism. Pa koupe bwa song is a vivid example of their social awareness. They are simply social activists of a different genre.
We were fortunate to bear witness to Barikad 2008 carnival meringue on Champ-de-Mars, Tifi pile, ti gason piafe.An experience which will never fade from our memory.
Unfortunately four important members of Barikad: Papa K-tafalk (Sénatus Jean Walker), Déjà Voo (Junior Badio) Dade (Jhonny Emmanuel), Djo (Wilberson Magloire died on an auto accident on June 15, 2008 after a performance.
