"I'm still figuring that out," Jean said with a laugh about how he schedules his time. "It's definitely tough. It's a lot of hats. As much as I do concerts, I give as much time to charities."

With "The Carnival II: Memoirs of an Immigrant," Jean continues a solo career that began a decade ago with his 1997 triple-platinum debut solo album, "Wyclef Jean Presents The Carnival Featuring Refugee All-Stars." "Carnival II's" first single is the hummable "Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill)," featuring Akon, Lil' Wayne and Niia.

Recently, however, he has been embroiled in controversy. Jean was among a handful of entertainers implicated in an investigation by an Albany County, NY, district attorney for allegedly receiving human growth hormones and/or steroids. No charges have been filed against Jean or the other entertainers, but the doctors who allegedly prescribed the drugs are under investigation. Jean's record company said he had no comment. Jean told a journalist he would discuss it when he was found guilty or innocent.

On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jean, a Haitian immigrant, spoke to LiveDaily about immigration reform, his duets with Norah Jones and Paul Simon, and why "Hips Don't Lie" didn't quite cut it the first time around.

LiveDaily: How's the tour going so far?

Wyclef Jean: It's been going great. We're having a good time.

Do you concentrate mostly on the new album or supply fans with a retrospective of your work?

Everything, but we are definitely focusing on more of the songwriting. There's definitely more focusing on the musicianship, the band. I've been practicing a lot with my band and just decided we're going to play music. We want to really give people a musical concert. It's fun.

Why did you decide to call your album "Carnival II"?

It's volume two because we did volume one in '97 and there was a mixture of world beat rhythms with a hip-hop overtone. We felt this was a continuation of that.

I noticed in listening to the album that there's a range of influences, from metal music to Indian music. Was mixing genres a goal of yours?

Yeah, definitely. I'm influenced by a lot of music, music theory. Being a student of jazz, my head always stays very open to sonically different sounds. These are all the different sounds that influence me--some past, some present. Thelonious Monk had his theory. Q had his theory. I've got my theory. It's not really about taking a bunch of stuff from all around the world and trying to put it together. But it's really understanding and appreciating the music. If you understand bhangra, and you love hip-hop, then you should know how to put the two together and make it sound dope, you know?

How did the duets come together with Norah Jones and Paul Simon?

Norah Jones, we originally did the record for the Katrina [fundraiser]. When we [were] going over the album, it just jelled real well acoustically. "Fast Car" with Paul Simon, basically I had the "Fast Car" idea and just went in and did it, and then I thought of Paul Simon singing the part on the record. I could hear Paul Simon's voice on it. I reached out to him, and he came in and he did a great job.

Had you been a big fan of Paul Simon?

Yeah, I'm a big fan. What I do with world music, that's what Paul Simon did back in the days. Nobody in the United States knew about the African choir and all that until Paul Simon came with it.

Living in Arizona, I'm particularly interested in immigration issues. What are your thoughts about the immigration problems and purported solutions in the United States, such as building a wall separating the United States from Mexico?

I think the first thing is: Amerigo Vespucci, he was an immigrant. That's how America got their names. Realistically, the Indians [were in America], and [the first immigrants] tried to kill them all off. Whenever I want to break theory, I always start at the beginning and then go to today, modern times. In modern time, I feel that you do need some form of laws. If something's going down in your neighborhood, somebody getting shot, you gotta know where this person ... You mostly have to have an idea. You have to have control of your neighborhoods. But, at the same time, our immigrants--our parents--have put in great time here, worked legally, put in their time. They've been in this country for years and they have not broken any laws. I really think some form of laws need to be set up for these people.

You recorded "Hips Don't Lie" under the name "Dance Like This" with Claudette Ortiz for the movie "Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights" in 2004. Why remake it?

God work in mysterious ways. I had to do a record for Shakira. They wanted me to remix "La Tortura." I was like, "No. I have this record that I really think if Shakira comes in with me and we redo it, I really think it'll work." I think it just missed [in 2004] because it wasn't promoted right and probably the right artist wasn't on the record. I guess my instincts [about the remake] were right.