Nel Ust Wyclef Jean is a Haitian rapper, singer, record producer and multi-instrumentalist. At the age of nine, Jean and his family immigrated to Northeastern United States. He formed the New Jersey-based hip hop trio Fugees in 1990 with fellow musicians Lauryn Hill and Pras Michel, for which Jean served as lead guitarist and producer. The group released the albums Blunted on Reality (1994) and The Score (1996), the latter became one of the best-selling albums of all time. Following their success, Jean released his debut solo album, Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival (1997), which yielded the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single "Gone till November".

Lauryn Noelle Hill is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as one of the most influential musicians of her generation. She is often credited for breaking barriers for female rappers, popularizing melodic rap, and pioneering neo soul for mainstream audiences. In addition to being named one of the 50 Great Voices by NPR, Hill was listed as one of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time by Rolling Stone. In 2015, she was ranked as the greatest female rapper by Billboard. Her other accolades include eight Grammy Awards—the most for any female rapper.