Wyclef Jean

He married Marie Claudinette in 1994 and the couple adopted daughter, Angelina Claudette Jean in March 2005.

In 2009, they renewed their wedding vows and currently stay together in New York City.

Wyclef Jean, also known as Nel Ust Wyclef Jean, was born to a Nazarene pastor, Gesner Jean, in the small town of Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti.

He and his three siblings were raised by their relatives when their parents moved to America. Later, young Jean also moved to the US at the age of 9.

He graduated from Vailsburg High School, Newark, after which he enrolled at the Eastern Nazarene College, Massachusetts. He briefly studied at the Five Town’s College in Dix Hill, and dropped out to pursue a career in music.

He collaborated with singer-songwriters Lauryn Hill and Prakazrel ‘Pras’ Michel, to form ‘The Refugee Camp’ band, which was later renamed to ‘The Fugees’. In 1993, they signed a record deal with ‘Ruffhouse Records’ and released their first album, ‘Blunted on Reality’, which became a moderate success.

The trio went on to release their second and highly successful album, ‘The Score’ in 1996. After this, he announced the release of his debut solo album, ‘The Carnival-1997’, which featured Hill and Pras, and contained two hit singles.

In the early 2000s, his solo albums, ‘The Ecleftic: 2 Sides II a Book’ ‘Masquerade’, ‘Greatest Hits’ and ‘The Preacher’s Son’ were released. Around this time, he also featured in hit albums by other popular singers like Whitney Houston, Shakira and Carlos Santana.

He has also written songs for some movies including ‘The Manchurian Candidate’ as well as for the documentary movie, ‘The Agronomist’.

In 2007, his single ’Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill)’ from his album, ‘Carnival Vol. II’ featuring rapper Lil Wayne and Akon, became a huge hit.

The 1996 album, ‘The Score’, ranked number 477 in the ‘Rolling Stone’ magazine’s list of ‘500 greatest albums of all time’ in 2003, was a major breakthrough in Jean’s musical career. It fetched the ‘Fugees’ their first ‘Grammy Award’ in two categories. It sold over 18 million copies and was on the no. 1 slot on the ‘Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums’ and ‘Billboard 200’.