In January 2010 a 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti and the tragic loss was a top news story for many months. A New York Times journalist focused on the story of an artist whose melancholy music resonated with the Haitian community in the midst of their tragedy. The artist was Beken and his music united the community in their shared sorrow, spurring demand for bootleg copies of his previous recordings. But Beken was unable to find his voice to write and sing about the earthquake’s impact on his life.