a1553: Pride, sizzle, winners enliven Haitian entertainment awards(fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Stanley Lucas <slucas@iri.org>

Posted on Mon, Apr. 01, 2002

Pride, sizzle, winners enliven Haitian entertainment awards
BY CARY DARLING
cdarling@herald.com
>From the Miami Herald

Celebration and self-assurance were the watchwords as the Haitian entertainment community honored its own at the sixth annual Haitian Music and Entertainment Awards on Saturday night at Miami Arena.

In its first year at the cavernous venue, after years at the smaller North Miami Beach Performing Arts Center, the 3 ¼-hour show -- which managed to span four languages -- was as much about emotional and political uplift as it was about handing out honors.

The evening began with the American and Haitian anthems. Later, Utah Jazz center Olden Polynice, who picked up the Guest of Honor Award, received stirring applause when he told the crowd that Haitians ''have been beaten up for so many years in the media'' and that ``you can beat us. You can ship us back to Haiti. You can even say we started AIDS. But we'll keep fighting. It's in our nature to be a proud people.''

He went on to chide people in the audience, some of whom had booed New York All Stars for winning in the CD Presentation category over such favorites as Sweet Micky and Alan Cave, for putting down another Haitian.

''We're all Haitians. We're all one,'' he said.

Miami Mayor Manny Diaz also was applauded when he opened his brief speech with a ''bonsoir'' (good evening) and said, ``This event belongs in Miami, and we're going to make sure it's always held in Miami.'' A proclamation was read, announcing that March 30 was Haitian Music and Entertainment Awards Day.

Much of the humor of the ''Haitian Kings of Comedy'' -- Mike Estime (The Cosby Show, Def Comedy Jam) and Will -- revolved around Haitian pride. But Estime turned political when he questioned the amount of U.S. aid given to Haiti as compared to Israel. And there was a palpable sense of enthusiasm in the audience whenever anyone spoke in Creole rather than English, French or Spanish.

Yet for all of that, as with any awards show, the crowd still wanted glitz, glamour -- and winners. The big winner of the night was the group ZIN and its leader, Alan Cave (pronounced Kah-VAY). Between the two, they picked up four awards: Compa Song (Cave's Se Pa Pou Dat), Solo Album (Se Pa Pou Dat), Performing Band (ZIN), and People's Choice Artist (Cave).

Zenglen was another multiple winner, nabbing the Haiti Tour and Compa Album (Let It Groove) honors. Twobadou Song of the Year went to Mizik Mizik's Blakawout, while Miami's Roots and Culture Festival got the Favorite Florida Festival of the Year award. T-Vice earned the accolade for Compa Techno Band of the Year.

Hosts and presenters for the show included Vanessa Williams (the one from Showtime's Soul Food, not the former Miss USA beauty queen who sang Save the Best for Last), actress Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon (The Jamie Foxx Show), Richie of Zenglen, and Supa Cindy of WEDR-FM (99.1).

Unfortunately, there were only two musical performances, both of which got the crowd dancing in the aisles. ZIN sang two songs, as did veteran New York-based compa group Tabou Combo, whose members received the 2002 Lifetime Achievement Award and sizzled in their few minutes onstage.

Though the arena was scaled down to 5,000 seats, there were still many empty rows, and because of that, the show wasn't as intimate as it might have been despite the presence of giant-screen projection.