Kenbe La [ken-bay lah] – the Haitian phrase for “never give up”, it is a brand new track produced by Paul Dodge from Minuit for The Kenbe La foundation, a charity set up to support childrens education in the earthquake stricken counrty of Haiti.
Kenbe La is the title and theme of the track written in response to work being done to rebuild earthquake ravaged Haiti – namely the work of the very inspirational Kiwi Emily Sanson-Rejouis, who lost family in the quake and established the foundation to help support schools in the area.
The ‘Kenbe La (Never Give Up)' single is a collaboration of musicians: Minuit’s Paul Dodge wrote the music and asked Nelson-based MC Luke Epapara (aka The Kurnel MC) to write and perform the verses, while Lisa Tomlins (Fly My Pretties/Fat Freddy's Drop) sings the 'Kenbe La' hook like she was from Kanye West's backing band, adding some haunting harmonies over the French chorus.
The track was then mixed by Minuit band mate Ryan Beehre. The track also features Haitian musical star Mika Ben. A truly international song!
All proceeds from this song go towards the charity. To find out more about the work go to http://kenbelafoundation.org/
Also, have a look at the following videos for more information on the making of the track and the great work the foundation is doing in Haiti.
Videos : Part1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgAku785DJA&feature=related
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kew4rDR_xmo