One of the most outstanding features in many genres of Haiti music is the medium or fast tempo beats that are produced by percussion instruments used such as the traditional drums. The use of percussion instruments by the Haitian musicians can be attributed to the fact that a remarkable percentage of Haitian people have an African origin. The percussion instruments' beats have contributed to the vibrancy of Haiti music as the dancers are propelled to dance vibrantly and fast so as to move along the rhythms of the drums.
Folklore is also very common among the Haitian people. Folklore can either be classified as European or African and it forms a good part of the Haiti Culture. Haiti music is performed by famous Haitian musicians especially during the annual cultural festivals held by Haitian people. One of the renowned Haitian music festivals is the Compas festival that is held every year in the Caribbean countries. The most festive season in Haiti is during Haitian carnival also referred to as Kanaval in Haitian Creole. The festivities mainly commence in February and the cities are lively with music and countless Haitian people and tourists as well, singing and dancing to Haiti music along the streets. The traditional Haitian musicians are busiest during this festive period. Carnival according to the culture of Haitian people is a period of all-night parties and escape from daily life and dance to authentic music like Haitian Konpa.
Nearly all genres of Haiti music played by popular Haitian musicians are in Haitian Creole. Many of Haitian musicians such as rap artists and hip hop artists perform their music in Creole language. Creole is a stable natural language that is formed by mixing parent languages. Creole language is spoken by Haitian people both adults and children and the Haitian musicians utilize the language as well in doing their compositions. The Haitian Creole has aspects from both French and West Africa.
The themes of Haiti music are mainly on social economic issues. Due to French colonization and African slavery in Haiti, many Haitian people underwent major challenges when they were growing up. Thus, many hip hop and rap Haitian musicians compose songs addressing issues of poverty, crime and violence. Contemporary Haitian musicians also compose songs based on prevailing situations such as male chauvinism and hetero sexual relationships.
Haiti music also contains some Spanish aspects due to the influence derived from the neighbouring Spanish speaking countries like Cuba. Spanish music feature guitars or guitar like instruments. Thus it is not that Haiti has a wide range of musical styles due to the fusions of many cultures. The styles have borrowed heavily from African culture as a result of slave trade that saw many Africans from West Africa being sold and taken to Haiti, European culture emerged due to the settlement of colonialists in Haiti. The Haitian music history is very rich and as diverse as it is, many individuals across the world seek it mainly the contemporary hip hop and rap music.
