[ t e x t . o n l y . v e r s i o n ] [ b y . c y c l o n e . w e h n e r ]
When Blandinna Jean was little, her father, a minister of the church, gave
her a biblical nickname inspired by a priest in the Old Testament,
Melchisedech. Years later Blandinna's brother Farel adopted the monicker
Sedeck when the two decided to pursue a musical career. Sedeck half jokes
that their God-fearing father didn't want to name him as such, because
Melky and Sedeck together would simply have been, 'too powerful'.
The New Jersey duo just happen to be the gifted younger siblings of Fugee
stalwart, Wyclef Jean. Their brilliant debut album, "Sister And Brother",
is the latest chapter in the extraordinary Refugee Camp chronicle, which
has also been responsible for definitive '90s epics such as "The Score",
Wyclef Jean's "The Carnival" and Lauryn Hill's "Miseducation" (those less
impressive solo debuts from Pras and John Forte belong in the appendices).
If interviewing Fugees Wyclef and Pras via phone can be tough (they just
won't talk if they can't suss you out in the flesh), Sedeck turns out to be
an engaging, gracious subject -- just as happy to chat as answer questions
about his budding musical career. He laughs good-naturedly when the fire
alarm in his UK hotel suddenly -- and, as it turns out, quite inexplicably
-- goes off, expresses his appreciation of European food (unlike every
other American visitor), and reveals that he himself is a fine cook. Your
mama would love him.
Unbelievably Melky cut a dance single a few years ago called "Body Music"
for a relatively obscure French label. She had come across an advertisement
for an R&B singer and thought the one-off session would be a cool way to
earn some extra money to put towards those college expenses. She won the
audition. 'The second Melky opened her mouth she had landed the gig,' her
proud brother remembers. 'Wyclef heard the song while on tour in Europe and
called us up, "I'm hearing Melky on the radio over here!"' In the meantime,
Sedeck taught himself how to use the studio -- cutting some underground
hip-hop tracks.
At any rate, Melky and Sedeck first appeared as a duo on the neo-soul "Love
Jones" soundtrack under the auspices of the Refugee Camp with "I've Got A
Love Jones", which was also released overseas on the downlow as a single.
They recorded the song with Darryl "Day" Pearson, whose name has previously
appeared alongside that of cutting-edge beat master, Timbaland. Fired up,
Melky and Sedeck cut more demos, which they shopped to various labels. EMI
offered the twosome a deal, but the US arm went under just before they had
finalised it. 'Luckily for us we had put off signing the contract,' Sedeck
recollects. 'We had opted not to sign it on the Friday and on the following
Monday the label collapsed.' They eventually aligned themselves with MCA
instead.
Melky and Sedeck pointedly chose a different label altogether to the
Fugees. They also decided to lay down their album without the input of
Clef. This bold manoeuvre has meant that they now have greater autonomy.
And they have likewise cultivated their own sound. 'We wanted it to be our
own project,' Sedeck starts. 'While we we're doing the album, Clef would
stop by and just make sure we we're on track. We have always been quite
competitive. So he would come in and play his DAT and I would say, "Yeah?
Check this out!" [laughs]. Clef supported us like that. But the thing about
music is it's very important to have control over your sound. Melky and I
watched Clef cut his and the Fugees' albums and we learnt a lot from that.
So we felt we were ready to do it on our own.'
And so, Melky and Sedeck drew on their culturally rich Haitian-American
heritage. "Sister And Brother" dips into Caribbean music, gospel, blues,
soul, hip-hop, classical and opera. Melky has undertaken formal studies in
music with some training in opera -- much like the late, great, soul diva
Minnie Riperton. Her confident soprano elevates album tracks like "Mi Amor"
and the lead-off single, "Raw".
While it would seem that the pair have enjoyed a dream run so far, Sedeck
points out that, as with Wyclef before them, the two faced considerable
opposition at home. Their strict, devout father was not pleased when three
of his precocious children decided to record secular music. Sure, playing
music had been an integral part of their upbringing, but only within the
confines of the church. The five Jean siblings would perform Christian
music for their father's congregation and enter talent competitions
sponsored by the ministry. Indeed, Sedeck notes that the only music his
father would allow to be heard in their family household was either
Christian or anything that fell under the innocuous pop banner.
To their parents' chagrin, Melky and Sedeck also left college in 1993 to
dedicate themselves to music. As is often the case within emigre families,
the Jean offspring had been encouraged to embark on tertiary education.
Melky planned to teach music, while Sedeck was studying law and theatre.
'Our parents were always telling us to strive to be the best we could be,'
Sedeck explains. 'They believed in discipline -- and that came from our
Haitian background, as well as the church.' Today Pastor Jean remains
unconvinced. But at least he has come to accept that his children are
bearing a positive message to the world.
Unlike his younger siblings, who were born in Brooklyn, New York, Wyclef
spent his early years in Haiti, where he is now regarded with all the
reverence of a Bob Marley. Clef has already drawn wider attention to the
plight of the country, which was isolated by the international community
after its enslaved population became the first to rise up against colonial
rule. Melky and Sedeck are equally aware of maintaining their roots by
reaching out. 'I'm very, very conscious that wherever we tour and there are
Haitians, we should call out to them,' Sedeck says. 'They appreciate
finding people who can speak the language.'
Although "Sister And Brother" is out in some parts of Europe and Australia,
the duo's US label, Universal, has delayed its Stateside release. This
would appear to make little sense, as the album could well blow up like
Hill's Grammy-winning "Miseducation".
Needless to say, Sedeck isn't stressing out. The siblings are working on
their new production company, FABLA, for which they intend to develop new
artists. The two wrote a song for Regina Belle's album, "Believe In Me",
which was released last year to admittedly little fanfare. They have also
contributed to their good friend Pearson's forthcoming debut album,
"Saviour". But ask Sedeck to identify the duo's dream collaborators and he
offers some unusual names. 'I would love to work with Enya, and Melky would
like to do something with BB King.' Sedeck also reveals that while growing
up he was a big fan of Aussie rockers Men At Work. And he would dearly love
to meet the guys behind '80s hits such as "Who Can It Be Now?" and "Down
Under". 'I would fly myself to Australia to work with them!,' he enthuses.
'We'd kill it.'
"Sister And Brother" is out now in Australia and Europe.
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