News & Updates — Papa Wemba

Congolese rumba/soukous superstar Papa Wemba (Shungu Wembadio before 1975) was "the King of Rumba Rock". A singer, musician, bandleader (indeed his entourage of hundreds ultimately got him into trouble--look it up for yourself) and fashion icon, he had a long and successful international career. He had several ensembles in his early career that blended Congolese folk sounds with Caribbean and pop music. He blew up worldwide in the early '80s with his afro-pop group Viva La Musica (a named inspired by seeing the Fania All-Stars in Kinshasa), which had young Koffi Olomide as a composer. In '77 he started the Molokai...