New York City – It began with a rhythm, not a speech. When Zohran Mamdani, the young democratic socialist from Queens, walked onto the stage at Barclays Center during the electrifying BAYO concert, the cheers were deafening. Thousands of Haitian music fans waved flags, sang along, and danced, unaware that they were also witnessing a new chapter in political history being written to the beat of Haitian Kompa.
Mamdani’s victory in the 2025 New York City mayoral race has made headlines across the world: the city’s first Muslim mayor and the youngest in nearly a century. But behind that triumph stands an unexpected cultural ally, the Haitian Music Industry, affectionately known as the HMI, which helped him connect with one of New York’s most passionate and politically aware immigrant communities.
The Haitian Soundtrack of a Political Revolution
For decades, the HMI has been more than a genre; it’s a lifeline for the Haitian diaspora, a reflection of resilience, joy, and the unshakable will to thrive in exile. In Brooklyn, Queens, and Long Island, Haitian music doesn’t just entertain, it unites. It gives identity to people who have rebuilt their lives in a city that pulses with diversity.
Mamdani recognized that truth. Unlike traditional politicians who parachute into communities during election season, he immersed himself in the Haitian experience, attending concerts, cultural galas, and festivals, listening to stories, and learning from the rhythm of the people.
At BAYO at Barclays Center, his message of fairness, equity, and solidarity hit home. “We cannot talk about New York without talking about Haiti,” Mamdani told the crowd. “Your culture, your music, your courage, it is the spirit of this city.” The audience erupted. It wasn’t campaign theater; it was mutual respect.
When Culture Becomes a Campaign Force
Within the Haitian diaspora, music and politics have always intertwined. From the protest songs of Manno Charlemagne to the poetic power of Emeline Michel, Haitian artists have long used their art to speak truth.
In New York, that tradition was revitalized through the HMI’s informal yet influential partnership with Mamdani’s campaign. Concert promoters, DJs, and cultural influencers amplified the message across social media, while Haitian-American youth rallied around hashtags like #BAYOforChange and #HaitiansForMamdani. Although many Haitian musicians and promoters in the city openly voiced their support, much of the credit belongs to local Haitian community leaders who organized and drove the movement forward.
At every event where Kompa rhythms played, the message of civic engagement echoed louder: “Vote. Participate. Represent. ” For a community too often overlooked by city power structures, the HMI became a megaphone, and Mamdani listened.
The Human Side: Haitians, ICE, and the Struggle for Dignity
Behind the joy of the music lies a painful truth. Many Haitian immigrants in New York live with anxiety fueled by ICE operations, TPS uncertainty, and the constant fear of deportation. Families are separated. Breadwinners are detained. Hope becomes fragile.
Mamdani’s empathy on this issue transformed hearts into votes. His calls to strengthen sanctuary city protections, provide legal aid for immigrants, and create mental health programs for asylum seekers resonated with Haitian families who live that reality every day.
In Manhattan, a Haitian social worker in East Harlem, who does not want his name to be public due to the retaliation culture existing in the United States, lately said it best: “When Mamdani came to Barclays, he didn’t just make promises; he gave us a voice. For once, someone spoke our pain in public.”
The Unsung Heroes: Haitian Social Workers, Nurses, and Activists
Beyond the music, another force quietly powered Mamdani’s movement: the everyday heroes of the Haitian community. Social workers, nurses, teachers, and activists became the backbone of his campaign in Brooklyn and Queens. They organized voter registration drives in churches, clinics, and community centers, translating campaign materials into Creole and driving elders to polling stations.
Their shared mission was to elect a leader who saw their struggles not as statistics, but as stories.
“Zohran understood that service and solidarity are the same thing,” said Jeanne Philippe Dorsainvil, a Haitian nurse from Crown Heights. “That’s the rhythm of our people, helping one another.”
HMI as a Cultural Engine of Democracy
The Haitian Music Industry has always been political in its essence, even when it doesn’t sing about politics. It speaks to liberty, dignity, and unity, values born from Haiti’s revolutionary spirit and carried through every note of Kompa, Racine, and Troubadour.
By supporting Mamdani, the HMI demonstrated that culture remains one of the most potent tools of civic influence. Through melody and rhythm, the community sent a message to City Hall: “We are here. We matter.” As one promoter put it after the election, “The night Mamdani danced to Kompa, he became one of us. And when he won, it felt like all of Haiti won, too.”
A New York Story with a Haitian Beat
Mamdani’s rise is not just a matter of political history; it’s a cultural poem. It’s the story of how music, migration, and mutual respect can reshape a city’s destiny. In a metropolis where millions struggle to be heard, the Haitian community has proven that rhythm can be a form of resistance and that unity, when amplified, can turn applause into action. As Kompa songs echoed through the streets of Brooklyn on election night, a single truth became clear: The soul of New York now beats, in part, to a Haitian drum.
HMI Magazine Reflection
The Haitian Music Industry continues to demonstrate its power far beyond the stage, as a movement of culture, identity, and influence. From Barclays Center to the ballot box, from the suffering of immigrants to the joy of music, the HMI remains a symbol of Haiti’s enduring gift to the world: the ability to turn struggle into song and song into strength. And in that rhythm, New York found its next mayor.
The HMI Magazine, where Haitian culture meets the world.
Following his groundbreaking election victory, New York City’s new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, is expected to sit down for an exclusive interview with the HMI Magazine, a conversation that will explore the intersection of politics, culture, and the Haitian spirit that played a key role in his path to City Hall.
From his warm reception at the BAYO concert to his continued connection with Haitian artists and community leaders, Mamdani’s story reflects the power of cultural unity in shaping modern leadership. In this anticipated feature, the HMI Magazine offers readers a rare inside look at how music, activism, and shared purpose are redefining the meaning of progress in America’s most diverse city.
Stay tuned, only in HMI Magazine, where Haitian culture meets influence, innovation, and history in motion.
By The HMI Magazine Political & Cultural Desk
