Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
The Austin Chronicle
Entertainment Weekly	A
Los Angeles Times
NME	8/10
Pitchfork Media	8.1/10
Rolling Stone
The Rolling Stone Album Guide
Spin	8/10
The Village Voice	A−

The Carnival is the debut album released by American hip hop musician Wyclef Jean. Released on June 24, 1997, Jean also served as the album's executive producer. The album was a critical and commercial success, reaching at number sixteen on the US Billboard 200 chart, and reaching the top five on the Top R&B Albums chart, peaking at number four and garnered Jean two Grammy Award nominations for the 40th Grammy Awards, including one for Best Rap Album. The US top ten hit, "Gone till November" earned Jean a nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 41st Grammy Awards in 1999.

The album encompasses many musical genres, including hip hop, reggae, folk, disco, soul, Son Cubano and Haitian music. The album features guest appearances from Celia Cruz, The Neville Brothers and Jean's bandmates from The Fugees, Lauryn Hill and Pras. It also features skits between many of its songs, most of them set in a fictional trial for Wyclef Jean, in which he is accused of being "a player" and a "bad influence". The final three songs on the album are sung in Haitian Creole.

The Carnival spawned the singles "Gone Till November", "We Trying to Stay Alive", "Guantanamera" and "To All the Girls". The album sold over 5 million copies worldwide, and was RIAA certified 2x Platinum.

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Wikipedia