He was one of the most talented musicians of his generation whose ode to his country — Ayti Se (Haiti is) — two years after its most devastating tragedy, the 2010 earthquake, touched Haitian hearts around the world.
Michael Benjamin, who was better known by his stage name, Mikaben, died Saturday after collapsing on stage in Paris while performing with the Haitian konpa band Carimi. He was 41.
“This is a shock,” Haiti-born hip hop artist and Grammy winner Wyclef Jean y told the Miami Herald.
The cause of death has yet to be verified, though reports say the younger Benjamin died from cardiac arrest.
“He was a musical genius and that’s what we just lost,” said Alex Abellard, the maestro of Zin, the Brooklyn-based band that was one of the founders of the New Generation Konpa in the late 1980s.
“His writing was very original,” Abellard said. “Just imagine not having that anymore in a country that’s missing so much now. That’s a big loss for our culture globally.”
Benjamin’s musical career spanned more than 20 years, after he rose to fame in Haiti and abroad in the early 2000s with major hits like “Ou Pati” and popular collaborations with fellow Haitian Music Industry (HMI) stars like Carimi, Alan Cave and DJ Michael Brun. His range of skills came in full display after Konpa Kreyol, a popular band, split into two groups — Kreyol La and Krezi Mizik — and the latter recruited Benjamin to be its lead singer.
Benjamin’s vocal range made Krezi a tour de force in the Haitian Music Industry. He sang melodies and could captivate a carnival audience, moving throngs of revelers from right to left as they waved their bandanas in near delirium.
Abellard said he remembered Zin touring with Benjamin in Martinique and Guadeloupe. His personality was magnetic, fans adored him and he in turn, took the time to interact with the fans.
Benjamin and Fanfan married in November 2020 and had a daughter one year later. According to his Instagram posts, the pair was expecting their second child in December 2022.
In his last tweet, in French, Benjamin wished his ‘older brothers’ Carimi good luck at the Paris concert and thanked the band for opening doors for musicians like him who came after the trio.
‘Bonne chance a mes grands frères pour ce soir ! Merci d’avoir ouvert la voie pour nous autres qui vous suivons! Nous vous aimons! Haiti vous aime beaucoup! Que l’amour et la lumière vous accompagnent durant le concert ou des milliers de fans seront en Harmonie parfaite avec vous’.
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