Jabulani Library

ISAAC MUSEKIWA: THE SAX LEGEND OF CONGOLESE RUMBA

April 12, 2025 - 01:55 PM ISAAC MUSEKIWA, the legendary saxophonist of Rumba Congolaise, was far greater than the image traditionally portrayed: that of an occasional, ordinary sax player among many in the OK Jazz lineup.A tenor sax specialist, Musekiwa honed his craft at Opika Studios under the guidance of Belgian jazz musician Fud Candrix while performing with Grand Kallé’s African Jazz. He became one of the earliest indigenous Africans to rise as a professional saxophonist in Rumba Congolaise. His roots trace back to Zambia.Born in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) to Zambian parents, Musekiwa revealed during a 1973 visit to Tanzania with OK Jazz that he was the brother of Michael Enock, a......

THE STORY OF EVE NAMULANDA AND KECO International BAND

April 12, 2025 - 01:21 PM Kenya has only one woman-led band, KECO International, founded and led by Eva Namulanda. Over the past seven decades since the advent of recording technology, the country has seen only a marginal contribution by female musicians. This trend likely extends across East Africa and perhaps even to the musically rich Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Music remains a male-dominated industry, and a woman’s struggle to break through can be likened to tracing a black cat in total darkness. While some female musicians, like the legendary “Mama Africa” Miriam Makeba, rose to international fame through their own efforts, others, like Mbilia Bel, began their careers in the shadows......

KASONGO LYRICS WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION

April 08, 2025 - 04:00 PM KASONGO LYRICS WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATION BY ORCHESTRE SUPER MAZEMBE [Chorus] Kasongo ye ye ee Mobali na ngai [my husband]Kasongo nga nawe oo [Kasongo I am dying]Zonga libala ee [come back to the marriage] x2 Kasongo yo yo, mobali na ngai [Kasongo my husband] Kasongo nga nawe oo [Kasongo I am dying] Zonga libala ee [come back to the marriage] [Chorus] Nga na ndako Kasongo [while in the house Kasongo] miso na nzela [constantly staring at the street] Soki okozonga dia ee [if you will ever return] yebisa nga ye ee [let me know dear] [Chorus] Libala na ndako Kasongo [In this kind of marriage] batunaka......

TRACING LABAN OCHUKA'S FOOTPRINTS IN MUSIC

April 05, 2025 - 03:20 PM "Snakes give birth to long things." This saying helps explain why Dan Ochuka, son of Laban Ochuka, a superstar from the Maroon Commandos, is an accomplished musician, as were both of his parents.His mother, Agnes, was a professional mourner, a role that involved a great deal of music, while his father was a dancer of the traditional Abanyole dance known as Esirembe.Ochuka, one of Kenya’s finest musical sons, began his music career in the early 1970s in Ebunangwe, Emuhaya, in what is now Vihiga County, where he was born and raised. His earliest involvement in what would become a blossoming career began as a box guitar specialist, performing at funerals and entertainment joints.This......

THE CONGOLESE MUSIC & FASHION ICON

April 02, 2025 - 04:50 AM Papa Wemba collapsed and died on stage while doing what he loved most: music. A craft he had dedicated five decades to since his debut with Zaiko Langa Langa in 1969. Popularly known as Le Kuru, Papa Wemba was one of the greatest talents from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a land often regarded as the home of musical gods. His career was defined by three key elements: his unique voice, his ability to fuse genres, and his deep influence in fashion through La Sape, a movement in the DRC known for its flamboyant elegance. Perhaps nothing captured the magnitude of his loss more than the symbolic arrival of a Congo Airways plane named after Patrice Lumumba, the nation’s......

MISSILE LYRICS WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS

March 28, 2025 - 07:01 PM The song Missile was released in 1983. It was recorded in Paris as part of the Choc Choc Choc sessions that featured musicians from both Afrisa and TPOK Jazz. Lyrically it is a classic Josky Kiambukuta song that laments the pain of love. Josky shows his full vocal range all the way from high notes to deep bass. Mavatiku Visi aka Michelino is on lead guitar. Bolingo napesa nayo ooh, Ezali ya kobatelama aah Motema ya mwana moto ooh, eboya ba pasi ya L'amour Soki ngai nalingi yo linga ngai, Linga ngai tcherie eh Komipesa tolingana, wana nde kimya ah The love that I gave to you, It should be taken care of a person's heart hates the problems of love If I love......

SIAMA’S MYSTICAL GUITAR THAT BRIDGED CONTINENTS

March 25, 2025 - 11:13 PM "Siama, I've missed you for 40 years. Now I can die happy because you've visited me." These were the words of Siama Matuzungidi's mother, Diambela, when the US-based musician visited her in 2010 after more than four decades abroad without setting foot at home. Though based in Minneapolis, USA, since 1996, it was in Africa—specifically Nairobi—where Siama rose to prominence in the music scene, playing rhythm guitar and composing for several top bands in the 1970s and '80s. Born in Matadi, Bas-Congo, in the 1950s, Siama made it to the big stage in the mid-1970s, performing with Orchestra Cavacha, led by Dona Mobeti and Mopero Wa Maloba. It was with this group that he composed......

DIEUDOS DUKI MAKWANZI

March 23, 2025 - 05:20 AM DIEUDOS DUKI MAKWANZI, the Soloist of Le Noir, Passes Away. Dieudos Duki Makwanzi, the renowned soloist of Le Noir, passed away on March 20 in Brussels, Belgium, where he had been residing. In the early 1970s, he performed with Le Noir in Nairobi, Kenya. The band was led by veteran musician Chuza Kabaselle and was among the few Congolese bands that returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) intact, unlike many others that either remained abroad, disbanded, or disintegrated. In addition to Chuza Kabaselle, who played the congas, Le Noir featured other notable musicians, including Negro Sax veteran Beya Maduma and Amba Zozo, who also played with Negro Success. According to Alastair......

FATHER OF AFRO JAZZ

March 20, 2025 - 08:00 PM Africa isn’t just about war, poverty, famine, and humanitarian crises, as often depicted by the international media. Africa is also a story of a people bound by kinship, deeply in love with their culture, whose story is better narrated through art than documentaries, and whose resilience is self-evident in their history. Not many artists have had the opportunity to showcase the continent’s capabilities to a global audience. However, deep in western Cameroon, a woman of the Douala tribe gave birth to a child who would help rewrite the history of Africa. On December 12, 1933, Emmanuel N’Djoke Dibango, later known as Manu Dibango, was born. He grew up in his father’s......

MUSA JUMA: THE LUNNA KIDI PROTEGE WITH A FANATIC FOLLOWING

March 18, 2025 - 06:20 PM One evening in October 1992, LUNNA Kidi was invited to perform at the funeral of Zackayo Adero in Ramba. Zackayo Adero was a prominent businessman and a great friend of Kabaselle. At that time, the manager of the band was Ogola Oyier, a physics teacher at Otieno Oyoo Secondary School. A few minutes into the performance, one of the major amplifiers blew out. It was already too late to travel to Kisumu, more than 50 kilometers away, to buy a replacement. Even in Bondo, the shops had already closed. What were the options? Someone suggested sending an emissary to borrow an amplifier from any of the bands performing in Bondo. It was estimated that, given Kale’s status, any of the......