Haïti Chérie

Lyrics

Ayiti cheri pi bon peyi pase ou nanpwen Fòk mwen te kite w pou mwen te kapab konprann valè w Fòk mwen te lese w pou m te kap apresye w Pou m santi vrèman tout sa ou te ye pou mwen Gen bon solèy bon rivyè e bon brevaj Anba pyebwa ou toujou jwenn bon lonbraj Gen bon ti van ki bannou bon ti frechè Ayiti Toma se yon peyi ki mè chè Lè w lan peyi blan ou gen yon vye frèt ki pa janm bon E tout lajounen ou oblije ap boule chabon Ou pakab wè klè otan syèl-la andèy E pandan si mwa tout pyebwa pa genyen fèy Lan peyi mwen gen solèy pou bay chalè Diran lane tout pyebwa ap bay lonbraj Bon briz de mè toujou soufle sou nos plaj Ayiti Toma se yon peyi ki mè chè Kon w lan peyi blan ou wè tout figi yon sèl koulè Lanpwen milatrès bèl marabou, bèl grifonn kreyòl Ki renmen bèl wòb bon poud e bon odè Ni bèl jenn nègès ki konn di bon ti pawòl Lan peyi mwen lè tout bèl moun si la yo Sòti lan mès ou sòti lan sinema Se pou gade se pou rete dyòl lolo A la bon peyi se ti Dayiti Toma! Lè w lan peyi blan ou pa wè mango ni kòk di tou Lanpwen sapoti ni bèl kayimit vèt ou vyolèt Lanpwen zanana ni bèl ti pòm kajou Ki ban nou bon nwa pou nou fè bon ti tablèt Ou jwenn zoranj ki soti an Itali Men qui fennen qui toujou mwatye pouri An Ayiti sa si bon se koupe dwèt E sou se rapò nou bay tout peyi payèt Lè w lan peyi mwen kote ou pase tout lon chemen Se bonjou kompè e makomè e pitit la yo? Sa'n pa wè konsa manyen rentre ti bren Pou'n bwa ti kichoy pou nou jwe de ti kout zo. Fin bay lan men se rentre lan gran pale Se politik se movèz sitiyasyon Sa pou nou fè se pou nou pran li kou l ye Men bon Dye si bon la ban nou benediksyon Lè w ou lan peyi blan ou pè promennen nwit tankou jou Tout moun pè mache prese prese wa di se chen fou Kote yo prale pouki yap kouri konsa? Yo pè pèdi tan yo pa janm di: kouman sa? Lan peyi mwen moun pa rete avèk lè Genyen libète ou gen tan pou pran frechè Kote ou pase se bonjou se bay lan men Moun pa janm prese yo koze tout lon chemen Lè w an Ayiti ou pa janm manke tan pou soufle Sak pa fèt jodi ou kap fè li demen si ou vle Kan demen rive kel bon ou kel pa bon Sa pa fè anyen tout moun konn di bon dye bon. An Ayiti moun pa janm dezespere Nou gen la fwa lan yon Dye ki pa janm manti Nap fè jodi kan demen pa asire A la bon peyi o mon Dye, se Ayiti! Haiti Chérie translates to(translation corrected by @growninhaiti): Haiti, my beloved, no other land is more beautiful than you. I had to leave you, in order to better understand how valuable you are I had to leave you, for me to appreciate you So I could truly feel all that you were for me There is sunshine, nice rivers and great drinks Underneath the trees, you'll always find great shade Where you'll find a gentle breeze to keep you cool Haiti, is a country dear to me In the white man's land, you're freezing and it's never good And all day, you're forced to burn coal You can't see clearly because the sky is always dark And for 6 months, all trees are without leaves In my country, there is sunshine to provide heat All year long, the trees continue to provide shade A soft breeze always blowing on our beaches Haiti, is a country dear to me Once in the white man's country, all faces are one color There is no variety such as our different shades of Kreyòl (Milatrès, Marabou, and Grifonn) That love beautiful dresses, powders and fine scents Nor black beauties that know the sweetest things to say In my country, when all of these beautiful people leave church, it's like going to the movies you have to see this, you would remain wide mouthed and open eyed What an amazing country Haiti is! When you're in the white man's country, you don't see mangoes or roosters anywhere Neither sapoti or beautiful green and purple star apples Neither pineapples or beautiful cashew apples that give us great cashews to make delicious brittle with You'll find oranges that came from Italy But that are passed ripe and half rotten In Haiti, everything is finger licking good! And on that note, we're better then any other country When you're in my country, wherever you go and along your path it's: "hello sir" "hello miss" "how are the kids?" without knowing, you're invited in for a drink and to play some games. Every handshake invites a conversation Its politics, it's a bad situation what we need to do is accept it how it is If God is good, he will grant us salvation When you're in the white man's country, you're afraid to go out day or night Everyone is walking so fast that you'd think they're crazy dogs Where are they going? Why are they running? They in such a hurry that they never stop to ask how you're doing In my country, people don't go by time You have the liberty to take your time Wherever you go, it's "hello" and friendly handshakes People are never in a rush, we chat along our path When you're in Haiti, you always have enough time to whistle what doesn't get done today, can get done tomorrow if you want If tomorrow works, cool... If it doesn't... cool. It doesn't matter, everyone knows that God is good In Haiti, people are never desperate we trust in a God that never lies We'll do whatever we can today, because tomorrow is never certain What a great country, my God! It's Haiti!

Versions

Audrey Landers, is an American actress and singer who recorded a version in 1984.

Cornelia Schutt, known by her stage-name TiCorn, is a Haitian folk singer and songwriter recorded "Haiti Cherie in the 1960s.

Georges Moustaki, has long maintained "Haïti Chérie" in his Francophone repertoire.

Harry Belafonte, has recorded several versions of "Haïti Chérie" in English.

Nancy Ames, recorded a version in kreyôl ayisyenn in 1963 or 1964.