Haiti-born producer and artist Michaël Brun debuts his new single entitled “Charge It” featuring Masego, Jozzy, and Bayka released today via Astralwerks. Listen to “Charge It” HERE and watch the video HERE. The track premiered earlier today on BBC Radio 1Xtra.
On “Charge It,” Michaël, Traphousejazz multi-instrumentalist Masego, Grammy-award winning R&B singer- songwriter Jozzy, and rising Jamaican artist Bayka come together to create an addictive, energetic dance track. The hypnotic jam showcases Michaël’s ability to defy genre and create a catchy tune with a global sound that is guaranteed to keep dance floors full all summer long.
Of the track, Michaël said, “‘Charge It’ to me is the embodiment of 3 worlds colliding: Coupé-décalé, Jazz and Dancehall. Masego, Jozzy and Bayka all stepped out of their comfort zones to bring something special to this song, both in performance and storytelling. I love what we created and I think everyone will have a different interpretation of what it’s really about.”
The eye-catching music video for “Charge It” was shot in Jamaica and directed by Savannah Baker (Usher, Sean Paul, Katy Perry, Mariah Carey) and evokes the colorful and lively energy that is to be expected of a Michaël Brun hit. The video features British-Jamaican TikTok sensations T & A Twinz who have amassed over 2.5 million likes on the platform.
Link to hi-res photo here
Last week, the announcement of Michaël Brun’s signing to Capitol Music Group’s Astralwerks was announced via Variety. Of the signing, Michaël said, “This new music reflects all of those experiences, and I’m grateful that the team at Astralwerks are helping to bridge those sounds with the rest of the world.”
This summer, Michaël will return with his famous annual Bayo Block Party Tour. He has consistently brought audiences together with the tour, taking over renowned venues worldwide with classic elements such as “rara” and the spontaneous spirit of a Port-au-Prince street party. The Bayo Block Party Tour will include shows at Montreal Jazz Fest on July 7th, Central Park SummerStage on July 22nd, and more to come. Michaël Brun has partnered with PLUS1 so that $1 per ticket for the New York show goes to supporting Friends of Matènwa which empowers the Matènwa community, and by extension many other communities of Haiti, to defend children’s rights, reflect on local problems, and determine their own solutions. For Michaël’s Montreal show, $1 per ticket will go to The KANPE Foundation, a foundation that brings support to the underserved rural communities in Haiti on their path to autonomy.
Of the Haitian artwork for the Bayo Tour, Michaël said, “I’ve worked with the incredibly talented Haitian artist Yaël Talleyrand on BAYO artwork since 2017, and every new year brings a new theme. This year since these shows are happening during the peak of summer, we wanted to create a tribute to Fresko, the traditional ice treat that we drink in Haiti and across the Caribbean. We all associate Fresko with summer events and music, so we thought it would be a fun way to visually bring a little bit of Haiti to the world.”
Link to download Bayo tour artwork here
“Charge It” follows Michaël’s latest single, “Clueless” featuring Oxlade which was hailed by Okayafrica as “an incredibly addictive Caribbean-meets-afro-fusion track featuring a chorus that is sure to get stuck in your head.”
Hailing from Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Michaël has quietly emerged as an influential, impactful, and inimitable phenomenon. In addition to massive collaborations with Ed Sheeran, and MR EAZI, he served as a producer on J Balvin’s Latin GRAMMY® Award winning album Colores. On his solo music, he has reeled in over 100 million streams and counting in addition to earning praise from Variety, Billboard, The FADER, Rolling Stone, and TIME, which dubbed his music “a loving homage to [Haiti’s] rich styles.” He also serves as the face of the EMMY® Award-winning PBS series Beat Making Lab. Knocking on the door of superstardom, he’ll be unveiling more music throughout 2023.
Michaël Brun’s life has been punctuated by a series of resets. When he left Haiti as a teen in the wake of a coup to go to school in the U.S., when he left school to tour the world as an EDM DJ, performing for tens of thousands at festivals and collaborating with the likes of Tiësto and Calvin Harris, when he left that life behind to go back home to Haiti, collaborating with local musicians and mentoring kids, and now, as he prepares to bring the music and culture of Haiti and the diaspora to the world through his music after signing his first major label deal with Astralwerks. Brun has produced multi-platinum records and number one hits, won Grammys, and played Coachella at 20 years old but now, he wants to impact the world. Brun’s new music is a fusion of the cultures he’s encountered in his travels and 2023 will see a new renaissance of his talented sound. His most recent single “Clueless,” a collaboration with the rising Nigerian singer Oxlade, recording during his first-ever recording session in the U.S. Throughout the rest of this year, Brun will be releasing songs with Masego, J Balvin, and more. His Bayo tour, a touring version of the block parties he would throw in Haiti that would bring together veteran and emerging local artists (Boukman Eksperyans, Tabou Combo) with some of the world’s biggest stars (Major Lazer, Mr. Eazi, Wyclef), will return later this year (dates to be announced).
