Antoine Wendo Kolosoy, better known as Wendo Kolosoy or Papa Wendo, was a pioneering Congolese singer, songwriter, and guitarist, widely acknowledged as the creator or father of rumba congolaise.
He was born Antoine Kalosoyi on April 25, 1925, in Mai-Ndombe province of what was then the Belgian Congo. Orphaned by the age of nine, he was sent to be raised by the Society of the Missionaries of Africa. He began playing the guitar and performing at age eleven, reportedly after a dream where the spirit of his mother, who was a traditional singer, instructed him to do so. The missionaries, however, disapproved of the lyrics of his songs and expelled him from the orphanage around 1938.
Wendo began working on Congo River ferries as a boatman, entertaining passengers with music during his journeys. His early career included a period from 1941 to 1946 where he worked as a professional middleweight boxer, traveling across parts of Africa including Cameroon and Senegal.
In the mid-1940s, he settled in Léopoldville (now Kinshasa) and formed the Cuban-inspired group Victoria Kin, later known as Victoria Bakolo Miziki. He fused Latin jazz rhythms with traditional Congolese folk, laying the foundation for what became rumba congolaise, a genre also known as Soukous. Around this time, he started performing under the alias "Windsor," which eventually evolved into "Wendo."
His major breakthrough came in 1948 with the release of the song "Marie-Louise," co-written with Henri Bowane, which became the first major pan-African hit and established him as the premier Congolese artist of his time. This song was controversial, with colonial authorities and the Catholic church excommunicating him for a period, due to the song's perceived magical ability to raise the dead. The controversy ultimately vaulted the song to international attention.
In 1955, he formed the Trio BOW with fellow singers/guitarists Antoine Bukasa and Manuel D'Oliveira. Wendo recorded extensively with the Ngoma label until 1953. His widespread popularity during this time was such that the music of the era became colloquially known as Tango ya ba Wendo ("the time of Wendo"). His songs were sung in Nkundo, Lingala, and Swahili, and his distinctive style included a raspy, resonant voice, high-pitched inflections, and a trademark yodel.
Following Congo's independence, Wendo withdrew from the music scene for an extended period, particularly during the dictatorial reign of President Mobutu Sese Seko, because he refused to have his music used for political purposes. He made a significant comeback in the late 1990s following the overthrow of Mobutu and continued to perform and record, touring internationally with his band Victoria Bakolo Miziki, until giving his last concert in 2004. He passed away on July 28, 2008, in Kinshasa, leaving a legacy as a key figure in modern African music.