Waahli

Waahli (last name Yussef) is a versatile Montreal artist, musician and trilingual emcee of Haitian descent. His music education benefited from a father who was a seasoned guitarist, and from the strong influences of traditional Haitian musicians like Tabou Combo, Coupé Chloé, Marie, and Carole. Waahli taught himself to play the guitar after discovering hip hop – the kind of music he felt suited him best at the time. His music career began with the iconic Montreal rap–soul–jazz-reggae collective Nomadic Massive, which he co-founded in 2004. In recent years, Waahli has fruitfully collaborated with many of his Montreal colleagues, especially the JUNO-winning Latin artist Boogàt who is steeped in the sounds of rap, reggaeton, salsa and cumbia.

Waahli sings in French, English and Haitian Creole, and is admired for his conscious and thought-provoking lyrics, exploring topics such as spirituality and systemic racism. A follow-up to his 2020 recording Black Soap, Waahli’s latest release, Soap Opera (2022), is a tribute to his family’s precious Haitian roots and an exploration of grooves and rhythms that go beyond rap. Paradoxically, by being daring on the aesthetic level, and by interpreting texts mainly in Creole for the first time in his career, Waahli has also given listeners his most accessible album yet.