roosevelt sailliant, BIC

Poet, rapper-slammer BIC (Roosevelt Saillant) is a singer who uses the art of rhyme and navigates both poetic melodies and intense rhythms to create a successful synthesis between rap and folk. A recognized lyricist in Kreyòl (Hatitian Creole), his songs and writing are now studied in Haitian universities.

Coming to music via hip hop, BIC made his stage debut in 2000 with the band Flex. He then founded, with his fellow countryman John Mogene, the group BIC (for Brain-Intelligence-Creativity), with which he produced two albums: Wow (2005) and Farther (2008). In 2010, he began a solo career, keeping the name of BIC and performing under his new label Tizon Dife Recordz.

BIC has established himself as one of the essential artists of the Haitian music scene, performing regularly on North American stages. Winner of the 2014 “Visas for Creation” program organized by the French Institute, BIC was in residence at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris for three months, during which he finalized his fifth album Recto-Verso. BIC participated in the 2014 and 2015 editions of the MaMA, and performed in Armenia as part of the 31st Ministerial Conference of La Francophonie.

BIC released his latest album VOKABI-LARI on May 18, 2016 after a national tour. Before performing in Boston in 2017, he collaborated with MIT’s Nick Montfort and Michel DeGraff on a project exploring the connections that can be woven with music and poetry. This was followed by a performance on the stage of the World Music African Art Festival (WOMAAF) in Tangier, Morocco. Since October 2017, BIC has been a Handicap International Ambassador for a major awareness campaign on road safety.

In April 2019, BIC returned to MIT as Visiting Artist with the Center for Art, Science and Technology (CAST) where his texts were studied in classes and he collaborated with Boston-based musicians and the dancers of Jean Appolon Expressions. In June, BIC was part of Haiti Cultural Exchange’s program Ayiti Experimental, amonth-long celebration of Haitian artists and culture in Brooklyn, NY.