Born in 1948, Charlemagne grew up in the sprawling new suburb of Carrefour, to the south of the capital, where he was influenced as much by the songs of the peasants who moved into the area in search of a livelihood, as by his Catholic school choir. Raised by his aunt, he did not know who is father was until he turned 37.
The Jean-Claude Duvalier regime renewed the repression of political and cultural dissent in 1980, and Charlemagne was forced into exile. With the fall of the Duvaliers in 1986, he returned home, and was active in both political organising and the burgeoning roots or racines music scene. He formed a live group, Koral Konbit Kafou, which included drummers from a Voudou temple, and played concerts that provided a soundtrack for the popular mobilisation for political change in the late 1980s. Some of these songs can be heard on "Nou Nan Male ak Oganizasyon Mondyal", Kako Productions, 1988.
His support for the grassroots, popular movement frequently landed him in trouble with the Haitian military, and, after receiving death threats, he spent several years in semi-clandestinity. Charlemagne was a supporter of the Lavalas political movement of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide against whom the military launched a brutal coup d'état in September 1991. Charlemagne took refuge in the Argentine embassy and went into exile once again. During 1991-94, he played concerts in Miami, New York, and Montreal, where he rallied the expatriate Haitian communities in support of Haitian democracy. He released a recording, "La Fimen", Kako Productions, in 1994.
Following the United Nations intervention to restore the constitutional government in September 1994, Charlemagne returned to Haiti. In June 1995 he was elected mayor of the capital city, Port-au-Prince, defeating the incumbent, Evans Paul, but his term of office, which expired in early 1999, was beset with difficulties and controversy, and is not regarded as a success. His administrative responsibilities overshadowed his musical career, and one of his few public performances during that time was with the Haitian-American rap group, The Fugees, in Port-au-Prince in April 1997.
Charlemagne took up guitar and singing at the age of 16 and by 1968 formed a band named Les Remarquables. He later started a twoubadou band named Les Trouvères with Marco Jeanty. In the 1970s, he was part of the kilti libete or freedom culture movement that promoted popular culture, including acoustic, folk music.
As a singer, songwriter and political activist, Manno Charlemagne has been the vocal conscience of Haiti for over 30 years. A soulful yet brazen balladeer, he constantly challenged the status quo and used his acoustic guitar and tender baritone voice as weapons against brutal political regimes and the civilized indifference of the insulated upper-class. Charlemagne's writing drew on the twoubadou tradition, a guitar-based music that can trace its roots back both to the rural songs of the Haitian peasantry and to the Cuban influences brought back to Haiti by returning migrant sugar cane cutters in the early decades of the twentieth century.
The CD Les Inedits de Manno Charlemagne in Creole language is some of his most profound and provocative work. They are songs that for years were only performed in intimate settings, among close friends, and in front of those who were unafraid of how incendiary they could be. For to have performed them in public during the 1970s or 80s would have risked a great deal—arrest, harassment, and beyond.
With their cunning lyrics, they are the songs that the powers that be in Haiti did not want the Haitian people to hear. Intended to stir up resistance and bring about much-needed change in the country, they spoke the truth about corrupt governments and ruthless politicians, gave voice to the peasant class in Haiti, and captured the rawness and injustice of life in this country.
Although they sound like love songs to the non-Creole speaker, they are songs of protest aimed at the tools of oppression. And it is their unique juxtaposition of thorny words poured over gentle melodies that makes them so hauntingly beautiful.
Manno Charlemagne also appears in The Truth About Charlie, a movie by Jonathan Demme, one of his friends.
Lan Male m' Ye
Manno Charlemagne Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sou chak 100mil gen youn ki byen sa fè 6
Mil ki gen lajan eske se bondye'k vle'l konsa?
Pou'n jwenn repons lan nou sèl wa, m'pa kwe nan bib la'l ecri saaaaaa.
Manno Charlemagne's song "Lan Male m' Ye" is a powerful statement about the struggles of the Haitian people. It begins by highlighting the vast population of Haiti, which is made up of six million individuals. The next line draws attention to the fact that within every 100,000 Haitians, there is only one who is well-off, meaning that only 6,000 of the six million people have money. The singer then poses a question about whether or not it is God's will for those with wealth to have it, leaving the listener to ponder the ethical implications of such a question.
Charlemagne then admits that he himself does not believe in the interpretations of the Bible that would suggest that wealth is a sign of God's favor. Instead, he suggests that there must be more complex explanations for Haiti's widespread poverty. He implies that the government is corrupt, the economy is unstable, and that the Haitian people have been mistreated by forces beyond their immediate control.
Overall, this song serves as a rallying cry for the Haitian people to stand up and demand change. By highlighting the stark inequalities that exist within the country and questioning the reasons behind them, Charlemagne inspires his listeners to seek a better future.
Line by Line Meaning
Pèp haitien nou 6milyon,
Our Haitian people, six million strong,
Sou chak 100mil gen youn ki byen sa fè 6
For every one hundred thousand, one is wealthy, totaling six thousand
Mil ki gen lajan eske se bondye'k vle'l konsa?
Of the six thousand who are wealthy, is it God's will?
Pou'n jwenn repons lan nou sèl wa, m'pa kwe nan bib la'l ecri saaaaaa.
To find the answer, the only ruler is ourselves, I don't believe it's written in the Bible.
Contributed by Scarlett V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@FCRUD
2023 ap tande Manno 😢Peyi a gaspiye net 😢😢😢😢😢
@tariuschery8250
8juin 2023
@user-he9sz2ce4u
8 Nov 2023
@Slimdavido
8 Nov 2023 a 1h 49 am
Dlo kouri nan jem😢
@andrecilienentrepreneurdig4650
Merci manno charlemagne mwen dekouvri mizik ou an 2023 Rip
@CRYPTOCRAFT964
ki yes ki toujou ap tande mizik sa
@darlinegeorges7955
Si wap tande'l nn 2019 fèm wèww
@rhodeabigailmichel3055
Mwen kontinye ap tandel an 2020
@ketliemorin8870
Janvier 2024 avec les larmes aux yeux pour mes frères 😢😢.
@donaldturenne2946
Moun sa yo te wè lwen wi, sepa Vagabon kounya ki pral chita manje nan palè ak enkilpe non, respè pou ou Manno