So I've been listening to Reddy Amisi's Etoile a lot recently, and the fact that I could recognise Maika Munan's muted guitar really got me thinking. Overtime, I've come to realise that there are musicians who more or less have a trademark playing style some of us have come to associate with them. I've already mentioned Maika Munan's muted rhythm guitar, which can be heard on most of the songs he arranged throughout the 90s, but there is Papy Kakol and his distinctive kra-kra-kra-kra partition (one example can be heard on Solola Bien, during the 'solola bien, ozosolola bien te' part), which resulted in other drummers using similar partitions.


Skip to 3:40 for Djudjuchet's approach to the Kakol snare fill. @Mfumu Vata I remember you named one other song with a similar partition, but I forgot what it was.

Another example is a bass lick regularly played by Jean-Louis Bikunda, which is particularly evident on the songs he played on after he left the Big Stars. For example:


At 4:26


Towards the end, during the last 15 seconds.

While he's not the only bassist to use that lick as demonstrated by the below example, I usually associate the lick with him whenever I find him credited on an album since it's so widespread in his work.


Tosha Fulakanda playing a similar lick at 4:57.

I should also mention Flamme Kapaya's fast-paced guitar playing (for example, his riff after the Nsele, ba maman Nseke cry on Alerte Generale) and Djudjuchet's intricate hi-hat playing. I'd also mention programmer-arrangers like Phillipe Guez and Al Nzimbi, but that's another post for another day. Any more examples of musicians adding their own touch or anything else you associate with a particular musician?

So I've been listening to Reddy Amisi's Etoile a lot recently, and the fact that I could recognise Maika Munan's muted guitar really got me thinking. Overtime, I've come to realise that there are musicians who more or less have a trademark playing style some of us have come to associate with them. I've already mentioned Maika Munan's muted rhythm guitar, which can be heard on most of the songs he arranged throughout the 90s, but there is Papy Kakol and his distinctive kra-kra-kra-kra partition (one example can be heard on Solola Bien, during the 'solola bien, ozosolola bien te' part), which resulted in other drummers using similar partitions.


Skip to 3:40 for Djudjuchet's approach to the Kakol snare fill. @Mfumu Vata I remember you named one other song with a similar partition, but I forgot what it was.

Another example is a bass lick regularly played by Jean-Louis Bikunda, which is particularly evident on the songs he played on after he left the Big Stars. For example:


At 4:26


Towards the end, during the last 15 seconds.

While he's not the only bassist to use that lick as demonstrated by the below example, I usually associate the lick with him whenever I find him credited on an album since it's so widespread in his work.


Tosha Fulakanda playing a similar lick at 4:57.

I should also mention Flamme Kapaya's fast-paced guitar playing (for example, his riff after the Nsele, ba maman Nseke cry on Alerte Generale) and Djudjuchet's intricate hi-hat playing. I'd also mention programmer-arrangers like Phillipe Guez and Al Nzimbi, but that's another post for another day. Any more examples of musicians adding their own touch or anything else you associate with a particular musician?