For the first concert inside the Apollo Theater, or any major NYC venue since the start of the pandemic, Wyclef Jean took to the stage to perform songs from his classic 1997 album The Carnival.

The concert was live-streamed, no tickets needed. 

What You Need To Know

  • Wyclef Jean is the first performer to appear on the stage at the Apollo Theater since the pandemic

  • Wyclef performed The Carnival to an empty theater, while the concert was streamed for free

  • The Apollo Theater has a infamously tough crowd, something Wyclef knows from his years performing as a youngster

  • Expect to watch more performers from virtual streams inside major NYC venues in the coming weeks

Jean explained how he gets into the mode to perform without a crowd. 

"So, when I'm literally in the studio and, say I'm writing “Hips Don't Lie" for Shakira, you're not there, but once you hear that, you wanna dance and move your hips. So I could visualize what I want you to feel," he said.

The music is a celebration, and a call for peace and unity. And like former Fugees bandmate Lauryn Hill, Jean’s got history at the world famous Apollo Theater.

"I performed there, I think, I was 16 or 17, with my first group, Exact Change, and then it's one of the toughest crowds. I remember Lauren was like 12 when she first did that and they booed her, but she won the crowd back over. I think we all had a crazy vengeance. So by the time the Fugees got to the Apollo, [I] think we all were like, ‘We’re gonna show them what we're made of.’ And we took that place apart," he recalled of their 1995 performance there.

For the Apollo Theater, which canceled more than 150 events since the start of the pandemic, this concert is a new frontier beyond the virtual events it’s been producing. 

"There's no audience and for some place like the Apollo, that's a big deal,” said Kamilah Forbes, the executive producer of the Apollo Theater. “Because our theater is legendary, known for the audience-artist interaction. So that's really the biggest deal and we've had to follow very strict COVID protocols. So the big part of that is limiting the number of crews that we would normally have at one time in one space.”

Jean understands the importance of this moment for the live entrainment industry, which has been devastated by the restrictions on large gatherings.

“The idea to be part of an historic moment, to take baby steps on getting us back where we used to be, I'm very conscious of that," said Jean.

The Apollo has a full slate of virtual events for the fall and hopes to produce more concerts on the stage.  

Expect to see more performers back inside major NYC venues in the coming weeks, even though audiences will continue watching them in the virtual realm.