Le Grand Maitre Franco Luambo Luanzo Makiadi

RHUMBA LEGEND (1938 - 1989)
Did you know that Franco had several marriages which resulted in 18 children of which 17 were girls? He released more than 150 albums and composed close to 1,200 songs in his 37 years of music career.

Franco was born on 6th July 1938 in Sona-Bata village in the current Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). His genre was Rhumba music and was a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Franco was known for his mastery of Rhumba and was nicknamed the "sorcerer of Guitar". His Father Joseph Emongo was a railroad worker and his mother sold homemade bread at the local market.

He began his musical career at a tender age. By 7 years, he had already built his 1st homemade guitar which he played to attract customers in his mother's market stall.

His musical talent was 1st tapped by guitarist Paul Ebengo Dewayon who nurtured and taught him the basics of guitar. Professionally, Franco started performing at Dewayon's band called "Watam" at 12 years. While at Watam's band, he performed tremendously and pleased the audience severely with his good and exemplary skills in playing a guitar which was almost bigger than him.

Franco was once a Muslim, despite being born a Christian. From the 1970s to the 1980s, his TPOK Jazz Band spread in Europe and Africa. It was around this time when Franco converted to Islam and was named Abubakkar Sidiki. However, in 1987, Franco released his last song "Attention na Sida" and fell seriously ill. At this point, he converted back to Christianity and became a staunch Catholic until his death on 12th October 1989 (Aged 51 years).

FRANCO IN KISUMU
Franco visited Kisumu City in 1988 and had a big show at Moi Stadium. Thousands of fans from all over East Africa were present. Unfortunately, a big wall next to the stadium came down and some individuals died on the spot.

FIRST TRACK
In 1953, Franco made his 1st solo hit titled "Bolingo na ngai na Beatrice" (My love for Beatrice). In 1956 (higa gana achiel prapar ochiko, prabich gauchiel -Dholuo translation), Franco and Jean Serge Essous formed the band called OK Jazz Band which was later renamed TPOK Jazz Band (Tout Puissant Orchestre Kinshasa) meaning "all-powerful Kinshasa Orchestra". Two years later (1958), Jean left the band and Franco took over as the band leader. The TPOK Jazz band grew from the original 6 members to over 50 members 30 years later.

Franco assisted in the liberation of DRC through his songs during the dictatorial reign of Mobutu Sese Seko and was once in jail after singing a song attacking major authorities. Other founders of TPOK Jazz Band like Jean Serge Essous and Vicky Longomba left the group and joined a rival Africa Jazz Band led by Joseph Kabasselleh, the most influential band in Congo by then. As his music continued to evolve, Franco used his TPOK Jazz band to express his views about changing African society, not only Zaire.

By the mid-1970s, Franco was the Richest man in DRC and owned 4 of Kinshasa's biggest night clubs where they performed every weekend. When AIDS hit Africa, Franco was the 1st artist to address it with his 1987 "Attention na Sida". This is a 15-minute song that Franco used to caution people in sexual relationships and plea for government intervention to control AIDS.

He died on 12th October, 1989 in Brussels, Belgium, and his body was flown back to Zaire. The government declared four days of national mourning. Government radio by the name Voix du Zaire played nothing other than Franco's hits.

RIP Makiadi.