Wyclef Jean

Wyclef: Definitely when I got on the plane to go back to Haiti, it was an emotional thing for me. It definitely touched my heart when I landed. I cried.

Wyclef Jean: I wanna show that with this whole thug phenomenon, there's something deeper than that. I wanna talk to the hoodlums... because those same kids come to my shows and hear what I have to say, as well.

Wyclef Jean: No matter what I'm doing, I am a hip-hop artist. Those are and still stay my roots and my inspiration.

Wyclef Jean: When my dad passed two years ago, that shifted my whole way of thinking. Right away I wanted to do my music differently. I want to do things that will change people who hear it three hundred years from now, like scriptures.

Wyclef: I'm cheap, and I'm proud of it!

Wyclef: I'm 27 years old. I'm going to go into Hollywood really arrogant. I'll be breaking a lot of rules. It's going to be hot.

Wyclef (about working at a burger place): I would be writing so many songs in my head while I'm making 30 Whoppers and six fries. That's why it never got me down or whatever. Of course, I got fired because the place got stuck up.

Wyclef: I was a jazz major in high school, in an all-jazz band. No matter what I do, it features my musical influences.

Wyclef (about Lauryn Hill): I think Lauryn's music is just a reflection of how she feels in her mind, a state of mind of whatever she's in. And me knowing her since she was like 14, I could see.

Wyclef: I think it's cool to do stuff in a different language. Basically, I learned English through listening to rap. A lot of people think it's funny. But it's true; I used to try to get the accents.

Wyclef: I specialize in lyrics and melodies. I'm good with themes.

Wyclef: I grew up in a Caribbean family household, so the parents are always right. My father smacked me up 'til I was 20. It was a strict household.

Wyclef: I feel that life is short, so we should be disciplined, but at the same time we should have a good time.

Wyclef: I didn't grow up to call a woman a ho. That's just how I was brought up. I won't call a girl a bitch, unless she wants me to call her a bitch.

Wyclef: I definitely want to participate in more Spring Ting's. It's incredible because you get Reggae, Compas, everything on one stage. I think that's what makes it hot.

Wyclef: I always have a producer to the side of me, and I never want to do a record by myself.

Wyclef: For everybody who lost somebody out there and stuff, when you need therapy, music is the best way.

Wyclef: Bob Marley stood for universal peace and love. He tried to break racial barriers.

Wyclef: All that violence in the world, we need to stop that.

Wyclef: A lot of people are afraid to fly.

Wyclef: A lot of my music is very reggae- driven. Half of my life Bob Marley was all I listened to.