BIC brings Haitian Kreyòl arts and culture to the MIT community, reflecting on his 25-year career with a demonstration and talk at MIT on March 16, 2025.
BIC Tizon Dife
BIC brings Haitian Kreyòl arts and culture to the MIT community, reflecting on his 25-year career with a demonstration and talk at MIT on March 16, 2025.
BIC Tizon Dife
BIC brings Haitian Kreyòl arts and culture to the MIT community, reflecting on his 25-year career with a demonstration and talk at MIT on March 16, 2025.
BIC Tizon Dife
BIC brings Haitian Kreyòl arts and culture to the MIT community, reflecting on his 25-year career with a demonstration and talk at MIT on March 16, 2025.
BIC Tizon Dife
BIC brings Haitian Kreyòl arts and culture to the MIT community, reflecting on his 25-year career with a demonstration and talk at MIT on March 16, 2025.
BIC brings Haitian Kreyòl arts and culture to the MIT community, reflecting on his 25-year career with a demonstration and talk at MIT on March 16, 2025.
Building on his 2018–19 CAST visiting artist residency, BIC returns to MIT to share his work in Kreyòl-language poetry, rap, and song, in collaboration with MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences Professor Michel DeGraff and his spring 2025 linguistics class on Creole Languages & Caribbean Identities. The demonstration includes local musicians, singer Sherlee Skai, and Cambridge-based Haitian folkloric dance group Jean Appolon Expressions.
(order subject to change)
Yon ti kalkil with Jean Appolon Expressions
Vini kòmè
Je lève mon vers
Dyalòg moun fou (Lè m wè w)
Nou byen mal with Jean Appolon Expressions
Pòtoprens
Kokorat
Mèsi manman
1+1=1
Ti Mari bèl gazèl
BIC Tizon Dife, composer, vocals, guitar
with
Sherlee Skai, vocals
Clarens Antoine, guitar
Pierre Junior, keyboard
Evenson Merzius, bass
Jude Daven Texier, drums
Jean Appolon Expressions dancers: Velouse Joseph, Aiden Marshall, Meghan McGrath, Mcebisi Xotyeni
BIC Tizon Dife (Roosevelt Saillant, b. 1975) is a Haitian songwriter, rapper, and singer. He entered Haiti's music industry in 2000 with the group Flex and co-founded BIC (Brain-Intelligence-Creativity) with John Mgène. In 2010, he launched his solo career as BIC.
An internationally recognized artist, BIC performs regularly throughout North America and Europe. During his 2019 MIT residency through the Center for Art, Science & Technology (CAST), he co-led workshops on digital storytelling, music, dance, and poetry.
A committed humanitarian, BIC serves as Goodwill Ambassador for numerous organizations, including the Haitian Basketball Federation (since 2006), Social Support for Deprived Children of Haiti (SPEDH), and Center for Research, Reflection, Training and Social Action (CERFAS) since 2010. He represents the Francophonie in Haiti (since 2012) and joined UNICEF as Goodwill Ambassador (2021–23). Since 2017, he has served as Ambassador for Handicap International's road safety campaign.
Awards, 2014
Discography
World music singer-songwriter Sherlee Skai brings a unique sound shaped by multicultural influences from Haitian folklore to American jazz and soul. She sings from the heart combining music, activism, and history. Sherlee has graced stages such as Lincoln Center, MoCADA, and Haiti Cultural Exchange with her polished, incandescent jazz vocals. She released her debut album, TOUTOUNI – bare – in 2018. In her second album released April 2023, Sherlee Skai dedicated her lyrics and melodies to the current devastating migrant crisis in Haiti with the title EGZÒD for Exodus (great migration).
A fierce activist, Sherlee makes it her duty to advocate for better immigration policies in the US. Through her volunteer work with non-profit organizations, the artist has witnessed the racist treatment of black migrants, particularly Haitians, at the U.S.-Mexico border, and understands she must continue to use her music and voice to create change.
Jean Appolon Expressions (JAE) is a Boston-based dance organization that blends Haitian folkloric and contemporary styles. Founded by Jean Appolon, JAE creates a unique artistic vernacular that educates audiences about Haitian culture, traditions, history, and current issues. JAE is opening its new dance studio home in Nubian Square, Roxbury, MA in 2025.
JAE’s dynamic repertoire is designed to preserve Haitian folkloric culture while continuously revitalizing the art form in a way that is vital, accessible, inspiring, healing, and educational. The company is composed of dancers from diverse backgrounds, each committed to using dance to share and celebrate Haitian culture.
Appolon’s dance company has performed at major venues such as Jacob’s Pillow, Boston’s Paramount Center, The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, The Yard, and the ICA, as well as in site specific community spaces with free public performances. JAE has had the honor of sharing the stage with notable figures such as Danny Glover, Henry Louis Gates, and Edwidge Danticat, and collaborates with community partners throughout the greater Boston area.
Department of Linguistics and Philosophy for the study of language at MIT.
Building W97
W97-110
345 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA
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Special thanks to:
Lourdes-Anna Chancy, management (BIC Tizon Dife)
Mike J. Mailles, photography (BIC Tizon Dife)
Professor Michel DeGraff and MIT Department of Linguistics staff: Valentina Gaviria, Chrissy Graham, Jennifer Purdy, and Matthew Sikorski
W97 MIT Theater Arts and Artfinity team: Marisa Barnes, Lydia Brosnahan, David Colfer, Stacy DeBartolo, Heidi Erickson, Christian Frederickson, Kevin Fulton, Stephanie Irigoyen, Joseph Lark-Riley, Tim Lemp, Maggie Moore, Alayo Oloko, Leah Talatinian, Yi Tu
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