T-vice’s new album is slowly making its way

By Ardine IsmaSpecial to CSMS MagazineAfter weeks of great expectation from its fans, T-vice’s long anticipated album hit record stores across the world last week, pushing the Haitian Kompa once again to a new level. On the cover of this new album, Roberto Martino and Reynaldo Martino stand right beside their beautiful cars. Roberto looks clean while leaning against his new Range Rover, and Reynaldo looks like a playboy with his shades on top of his head, standing adjacent by his beautiful black convertible. The cover as well as the title of album Kite’m viv really sum up the album as an undeniable masterpiece with hit tracks suck asKite’m Viv, Beauté Dangereuse, Santi’m Ta Kryie, Ayiti Pap Kraze, J’aimerais Te Revoir, and Get to know me. The new addition of Oliver Duret as the second lead vocalist, this album shines better than the group’s less successful album Vicetime that sold only a mere 2,000 copies worldwide.      Kite’m Viv is certainly a song that starts the album on a right track with an upbeat kompa sound that can’t be denied. The song talks about reporters who have nothing better to do than to criticize musicians and write untrue rumors about them. The song is asking the detractors to leave musicians alone and to let them live and write music their own way.  The same track gives also a double twist, presenting the group as unbreakable, for after fourteen years of success in the Haitian music business, they can still be on top of the music scene despite harsh criticism for adversaries. The group believes that its owes its success to no one but God.      Track number 2 Beauté Dangereuse is a song that talks about a man’s love for his girlfriend and how he doesn’t care about what people think about their relationship. Roberto Martino and the new lead vocalist of the group Oliver Duret co-sing it in a duet. Oliver brings kind of a soulful element to the song that convinces you that the man in the song really loves his girlfriend despite what people say about their relationship.      The fourth track of the album Santi’m Ta Kriye is a song that was written by the singer himself, Oliver Duret. This song introduces the vocal talent of the new vocalist, who truly expresses his soulful voice in the kompa love song. In the song, he talks about an exgirlfriend who cheated on him and all the bad things she use to do to him in the past. In the track, it sounds as if he is talking to the woman and telling her that the relationship is over, and that everything that they shared together was all a lie.      The tenth track J’aimerais Te Revoir is a love song that gives a mixture of Zouk and Kompa in the melody. In song features the zouk diva Jocelyne Labylle who sings the first verse, singing about how she would love to talk to her lover and how much she wants to see him. Roberto sings most of the song, talking about his crush and how he would want see his crush every day, just to be able to be with her. This track has the makings of being a great love song for kompa lovers of all ages.      The sixth track Ayiti Pap Kraze is an inspirational song about the country of Haiti. It talks about the problems the country faces and how Haitians all over the world need to put all their heads together to save and preserve this beautiful country. The songs also talks about how Haiti will never go away and how the politicians in the country are not doing anything to help the country grow.      The eighth track of the album Get to know me is a more upbeat kompa song. The track talks about how a guy won’t get the respect he deserves from his girlfriend’s parents.  It also goes on to talk about how the parents need to take the time to get to know him instead of judging him because of his job as a musician.      In all, T-vice’s new album Kite’m viv is an album that has a song for just about any type of Kompa lover. It has songs about love relationships gone bad or good, ladies treating their men like dirt, songs about T-vice, and an inspirational song about the love of Haiti. This new album, however, seems to lack the vivid heat of the group’s previous one. Nonetheless, it is an album that every music lovers must have in their repertoire.See also Nicole Neret: A true princess lover