The 38e edition of the Nuits d’Afrique International Festival ended Sunday evening with the promise, kept, of a major concert offered by Haitian star Rutshelle Guillaume. A huge crowd converged on the Parterre of the Quartier des Spectacles to welcome the musician, to whom the festival will present this Monday during a ceremony at Montreal City Hall the Nuits d’Afrique Prize for the Francophonie “awarded to an artist with international influence, who embodies a unifying vision of the Francophonie and the diversity of cultural expressions of the International Francophone Space.”
Shortly after leaving the stage after more than 90 minutes of dance songs, Rutshelle Guillaume revealed on social media that she was the new recipient of the prize created in 2016 and awarded by the festival in partnership with the Ministry of International Relations and La Francophonie of Quebec and the City of Montreal, the Prix Nuits d’Afrique pour la Francophonie.
“This recognition is thanks to you, my dear compatriots!” she commented, who had appeared on stage draped in the Haitian two-tone. There was pride in the air in the city center and the national flag remained in full view throughout the evening, tied to Rutshelle’s microphone stand, who had around her a gleaming orchestra swollen by the presence of three brass players and two percussionists.
After an instrumental introduction to which her four dancers struggled, Rutshelle launched her recital to the tight rhythm of I amtaken from his first album Emotions (2014), with modernized orchestrations that nod to a Beyoncé hit. The next two, slow and suave soul / r&b songs, served to highlight the musician’s strong and supple voice.
“Are there any Haitians in the place?” she asked herself. “Rutshelle fanatics?” The place was packed, fans filming with their cell phones the first sequences of this evening that certainly started off gently, but was sure to gain in energy. After this smooth first quarter, Rutshelle spread her wings, demonstrating the musical versatility that serves her so well by flitting from pop-r&b to zouk and soukouss with which she seasons the kompa.
First surprise guest of the evening: veteran singer and rapper BIC, the “burning fire” of the Creole music scene, serving up his rhymes alongside his friend. Without wanting to take anything away from this performance, the audience will remember even better the appearance of the second guest: right in the middle of the concert, Rutshelle sang her recent hit Kè m Nan Men wwhen she noticed a young fan who seemed to know it by heart. The little girl couldn’t have been much older than ten; she was hauled up on stage, and this kompa-r&b refrain with its agile melody became a duet, Rutshelle even leaving her microphone in the hands of her admirer, who would remember this moment for the rest of her life!
Until Hold on, offered at the end of the show, Rutshelle Guillaume charmed the audience of Nuits d’Afrique with her scintillating voice and powerful stage presence. At the beginning of the evening, the Cuban music orchestra Septeto de Montréal (under the direction of Julio de Armas) had the right tempo to keep the audience waiting until the arrival of the headliner, who continued to shake her hips until the end of the festivities.