"Haiti ... has a rich cultural and linguistic heritage. The Haitian-American singer and musician Nathalie Joachim has been exploring her Haitian identity on her new album, Ki moun ou ye," says the BBC World Service Newshour presenter James Menendez. Joachim spoke with BBC journalist Martin Vennard about the album, due February 16 on New Amsterdam / Nonesuch Records.

"I tend to really focus on the beauty that still exists," Joachim tells Vennard. "While it's very easy to disregard the story of Haitian people as one of struggle and heartbreak and poverty, there are also so many incredible people living in Haiti who also care very deeply about each other, care very deeply about the country, care very deeply for their communities and for themselves." You can hear their conversation at just over thirty-eight minutes into the episode below via Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

On Ki moun ou ye, Nathalie Joachim takes listeners through an intimate collection of music that ponders its title’s question: “Who are you?” Inspired by the remote Caribbean farmland that her family continues to call home after seven generations and performed in both English and Haitian Creole, the work examines the richness of one’s voice—an instrument that brings with it DNA, ancestry, and identity—in a vibrant tapestry of Joachim’s voice, and intricately sampled vocal textures underscored by an acoustic instrumental ensemble. Ki moun ou ye explores Joachim’s personal history while highlighting her voice’s role as a tool for survival, healing, preservation of self, fellowship, and an affirmation of freedom. You can hear the title track and pre-order the album here.