By Odeisel

I have a special place in my heart for Wyclef Jean. I never had any delusions of grandeur or a desire to be a rapper, but Wyclef gave me my first opportunity to rock a mic on stage in front of a few thousand people. I wasn’t much of a Fugees fan but I really dug ‘Clef’s first album The Carnival.

Fast forward a decade or so and there’s no more Fugees, Clef faking getting shot in Haitian elections and taking glossy on top, matte finish on the bottom naked on a motorcycle pics. We’re quite a few years away from the “No, No, No” remix and Carlos Santana duets, but when you have legitimate musical talent, the door is never closed. Clef has been on the grind lately and has been dropping some heat, the latest of which is his new mixtape, April Showers. Even though May is like…tomorrow.

April Showers runs the full gamut of Wyclef’s musical range.  The high-powered Mid-Life Crisis features Maino and bangs in the whip or the headphones (or the strip club as it were). His guitar skills are on full display on Stay On My Jimi Hendrix(real guitar not 3 chord shit). He added a bit of creole seasoning to Drake’s Started From The Bottom on the interlude of the same name. He flips the original sample from Big Pimpin, leaving in its original ethnic bang but introducing some grimy synth and raga sizzle on Main Dish. He even goes South to enlist Kirko Bangz on The Go Go.

There are over 30 songs on this so the odds of digesting this in one setting is near impossible, but if you’re jobless or on a very long road trip, check this out. Clef gives shine to all of his associated artists from various cultural background, including a few female artists with some legitimate talent. Here it is in its entirety. April Showers. Look out for the upcoming album, The Carnival Begins.