Haitian Music Kreyol La Domination

With love, we should not expect things to be perfect all the times, but when the personality clashes are a regular thing, it’s time to take a deep look at the relationship. This is the essence of “On jou byen on jou mal” (Some Good Days, Some Bad Days), one of the eight tracks on the Kreyol La’s Domination album.

Or shall I say extended EP since their last album had nearly a dozen songs? On the ballad, Joe Zenny Jr., the lead singer makes love sound like a patient who’s terminally ill. “We invent reasons to fight,” he says at one point. “Our love is like a soap opera that’s never gonna end,” he sings at one point, pretty much summarizing the song. There are various communication missteps.

When he kids, she takes him seriously. When he throws a statement out there, she selects what she’ll take and what she won’t. The thing about the song is that the narrator doesn’t see breakup as a possibility. The drama seems to keep the relationship going. The drama is the relationship.

The most original track on the album so far, let’s see if there’s another mid-tempo track that will beat “On jou byen on jou mal” for sheer originality. “A Temps” (On Time) is your standard love song, a duet with a singer named Fatima.

Maybe I shouldn’t call it standard. It’s two people thanking one another for what the other has brought into his life. Let’s face one thing about us humans. We barely thank our mates for what they’ve done for us. Some are afraid of being vulnerable; others are just too plain selfish and ego-centric to give credit to a partner in a relationship.

And there’s a third category of couples who are fearful that if they express their gratitude to their partner, the partner will grow a big head, or start thinking too much of themselves. This is why songs like “A Temps” are important. It casts pride, ego, and fears aside and encourages.

According to an article that appeared in Forbes magazine, there are so many health and psychological benefits when we manifest gratitude in our relationships, so people play “A Temps” for your significant other, please.

Domination’s main dance track “Tanm Tanm”, featuring co-lead singer TMD, wipes out all emotions. It’s all about partying now. Threaded with reggae and having an afroworld sensibility, it also has hints of traditional roots music. The party continues with the title track Domination.

The song is delivered in high speed. It’s the type of song to speed to when you’re in your vehicle or to workout to if you’re the fitness-focused type.

Human loneliness is no joke. Not being in a relationship can have its upsides, but there’s definitely more downsides as the song “Mwen Pou Kò’m” (I’m All Alone) points out. There’s plenty of scientific facts and research data to support this song.

Weill Cornell Medicine did a research study that is cited in a New York Times article that revealed that older people who are not surrounded by loved ones tend to have disrupted sleep, and experience cognitive decline.

The American Psychological Association says similar things too regarding social isolation and cites it as a health threat! So it’s not too late: make some friends, fall in love again, create conversations with strangers. It’s not too late. Don’t be pou kò’w.

“Byen Pase” (All’s Good) is something unlike anything else I’ve heard on this album. It’s what you might expect to hear on a gospel album, not on an album that’s so far been about partying and relationship issues. The lyrics exhorts one to cultivate one’s spirituality and to bow to the One who’s greater than all of us.

After all that talk about spirituality, there’s more talk of partying! Two carnival songs close out Domination. While the beat is partying-like, the messages in the songs aren’t. The first is about Haitians’ massive flight to Chile to get jobs. The second is about the hopelessness and discouragement that Haiti’s youths face from mass unemployment and a lack of direction.

Domination is only eight tracks. But it brings so much pull with those eight tracks, and says so much, it carries the same weight as if it had a dozen songs.