Congo Vibes
Music => Congolese Music => Topic started by: Mfumu Vata on September 20, 2025, 00:14
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NRuy_cN2fM&t=2s
Here Wenge Musica 4x4 performing at Le Bataclan without Alain Makaba and Alain Mpela. For years I am wondering why Alain Makaba and Alain Mpela weren't there at Bataclan. I was hoping to hear it one day in the many interviews former Wenge 4x4 musicians were making. But it never happened
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ySUVv0aJAo&list=RD7ySUVv0aJAo&start_radio=1&t=2248s
The concert of Quartier Latin Academia at LSC. But here Suzuki 4x4 and Lebou Kabuya were absent. Lebou was to be seen in the cassette "Nzungu Ekotoko" where all members got presented, but Suzuki wasn't there. Which made me wonder if he left for a moment. I remember that there was a rumor at that time of Lebou Kabuya, Suzuki, Mboshi Lipassa and even Depitcho among the musicians that were about to rejoin Quartier Latin. But it didn't happen. I believe that it was from there that Mboshi created the cri "nga batindi nga na finga Che Guevara, nga bo. Nga batindi nga nakima Academia, nga bo"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ar5oMk6gPQ&t=338s
Extra Musica's first concert in U.K.. But Herman Ngassaki and Abilissi aren't there. It is an extract and I have never seen the whole cassette, so I don't know if they joined the rest later on stage. But if they were really absent what was the reason for it ? Didn't they receive visa's or was did they travel the same day as the concert. Because I remember Zaiko once performing in London without Nyoka Longo, because of Nyoka Longo missing the boat during the trip when having to get from Calais (France) to Dover (UK), while he had to perform later that evening.
I wonder if the public didn't ask their money back, having just two singers (Oxygene and Doudou), Kila Mbongo playbacking and Roga Roga joining the singing-section while playing guitar at that the same time. Btw, what the name of this gym/hall in Tottenham, because alot of Congolese artists used to perform there from the mid 1990s till early 2000s.
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About Suzuki and Lebou missing that LSC concert, from what Bouro and Sam said in interviews there was already tension in the group since their return to Kinshasa and how Sam was already sending new musicians like Pitchou Concorde to disrespect Lebou which might have resulted Lebou to boycott the concert.
With Suzuki well its well known he's unstable because they already offered him to join the group during Sanction recordings but he declined to do a solo career then decided to join the group with Sam and Bouro being the only ones against and when he did join he was being his usual troublesome self to the point Sam turned to Somono and co and said now you see why I didn't want Suzuki in the group.
I also wondered why Alain Mpela and Makaba missed the Boston concert
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSqJVxfFwPE
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According to Alain Makaba in one of his few interviews, he said that he couldn't tour with Wenge Musica to the United States, because he had to finish his album Pile ou Face (probably doing the mixing). The same album came out somewhere in August 1995, when Wenge just came back in Europe..
It's only now that I am noticing Alain Mpela's absence. Maitre Fi-Carré wasn't also there
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why wasnt dolce at olympia always been confusing to me
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because he was removed from the list by koffi over his affaire with nono,and then since he still had his visa he managed to come the day after concert
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The chapter of Somono and Nono was already closed after Ultimatum. However, Somono still held a grudge. There sometimes even moment that Somono was getting drunk and shouting about it. The real problem was that Koffi didn’t like Somono’s behavior, there were many incidents after Loi. Also Somono was unhappy because one of Koffi’s close friends scammed him with the money he had given to ship his car, and apparently, it was Koffi himself who had ordered him to do so.
On the return flight from Burkina Faso, Somono went hard on Koffi’s friend, screaming and insulting him while Koffi was sitting right next to them. Even before that trip, when they had gone to Uganda, Koffi had already had enough of him. After the concert, Museveni’s children invited them to go clubbing, but Koffi refused and Somono slept him in front of them. To punish him, Koffi decided not to bring him along for the next leg of the African Tour. He had already been considering leaving him behind for Olympia, but he wasn’t sure if Mboshi could handle animating alone.
After performing in Zimbabwe, Ivory Coastand Kenya, Koffi realized that Mboshi could manage the atalaku-section without Somono. From there, he made the ultimate decision to leave Somono behind for Olympia. However, a problem suddenly appeared. The Second Congo War had just started and the Rwandan army and the rebels were at Kinshasa’s doorstep. This made the national government decide to close the borders. This made it impossible for Quartier Latin to return to Kinshasa. Koffi wanted to take Rosette Kamono, Binda Bass and Modogo with him to Olympia. Modogo, Binda Bass, and Rosette Kamono managed to cross the Congo River to Brazzaville along with Somono, where they stayed twee weeks at Jean-Jacques Bayonne’s house. In meantime Quartier Latin performed at La Madeleine in Brussels without them. Through phone calls with Koffi, they managed to get tickets to travel to South Africa. The concert promoter wanted Somono as well, but Koffi refused. Koffi mistakenly bought two tickets for Modogo, he wanted Modogo to get immediatly in Paris to bring his important belongings that had been left in Kinshasa.
Modogo then traveled immediately from Brazzaville to Paris, while Somono used Modogo’s ticket to travel to South Africa together with Kamono and Binda Bass. When Koffi discovered that Somono had also gone to South Africa, he alerted the concert promoter not to make the same mistake again. Tickets were then sent to Kamono and Binda Bass to travel to Paris, leaving Somono behind. Somono was lucky to meet Francis Kalombo and Didier Mumengi, who were in South Africa for political reasons (trying to rally South Africa behind DR Congo, like Angola, Zimbabwe and Namibia, in the conflict Laurent-Désiré Kabila had with Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi). Francis Kalombo bought a ticket for Somono, who traveled to Paris the same night Quartier Latin was performing at Olympia, arriving the following day.
People close to Koffi managed to sort everything out, but Koffi still held a grudge against him. Some musicians were also snitching that Somono was speaking badly about Koffi. As a result, when they arrived in London, Somono was physically attacked by several people, which caused him to lose his voice during the performance at Brixton Academy.
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The chapter of Somono and Nono was already closed after Ultimatum. However, Somono still held a grudge. There sometimes even moment that Somono was getting drunk and shouting about it. The real problem was that Koffi didn’t like Somono’s behavior, there were many incidents after Loi. Also Somono was unhappy because one of Koffi’s close friends scammed him with the money he had given to ship his car, and apparently, it was Koffi himself who had ordered him to do so.
On the return flight from Burkina Faso, Somono went hard on Koffi’s friend, screaming and insulting him while Koffi was sitting right next to them. Even before that trip, when they had gone to Uganda, Koffi had already had enough of him. After the concert, Museveni’s children invited them to go clubbing, but Koffi refused and Somono slept him in front of them. To punish him, Koffi decided not to bring him along for the next leg of the African Tour. He had already been considering leaving him behind for Olympia, but he wasn’t sure if Mboshi could handle animating alone.
After performing in Zimbabwe, Ivory Coastand Kenya, Koffi realized that Mboshi could manage the atalaku-section without Somono. From there, he made the ultimate decision to leave Somono behind for Olympia. However, a problem suddenly appeared. The Second Congo War had just started and the Rwandan army and the rebels were at Kinshasa’s doorstep. This made the national government decide to close the borders. This made it impossible for Quartier Latin to return to Kinshasa. Koffi wanted to take Rosette Kamono, Binda Bass and Modogo with him to Olympia. Modogo, Binda Bass, and Rosette Kamono managed to cross the Congo River to Brazzaville along with Somono, where they stayed twee weeks at Jean-Jacques Bayonne’s house. In meantime Quartier Latin performed at La Madeleine in Brussels without them. Through phone calls with Koffi, they managed to get tickets to travel to South Africa. The concert promoter wanted Somono as well, but Koffi refused. Koffi mistakenly bought two tickets for Modogo, he wanted Modogo to get immediatly in Paris to bring his important belongings that had been left in Kinshasa.
Modogo then traveled immediately from Brazzaville to Paris, while Somono used Modogo’s ticket to travel to South Africa together with Kamono and Binda Bass. When Koffi discovered that Somono had also gone to South Africa, he alerted the concert promoter not to make the same mistake again. Tickets were then sent to Kamono and Binda Bass to travel to Paris, leaving Somono behind. Somono was lucky to meet Francis Kalombo and Didier Mumengi, who were in South Africa for political reasons (trying to rally South Africa behind DR Congo, like Angola, Zimbabwe and Namibia, in the conflict Laurent-Désiré Kabila had with Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi). Francis Kalombo bought a ticket for Somono, who traveled to Paris the same night Quartier Latin was performing at Olympia, arriving the following day.
People close to Koffi managed to sort everything out, but Koffi still held a grudge against him. Some musicians were also snitching that Somono was speaking badly about Koffi. As a result, when they arrived in London, Somono was physically attacked by several people, which caused him to lose his voice during the performance at Brixton Academy.
Do you think Koffi overreacted? The car scam was Koffi trying to provoke Somono into a rude response and getting himself fired because they couldn't move past the Nono situation among their other differences.
Remember, that the other main members of Quartier Latin weren't happy with Koffi either because of Depitcho's arrival, Suzuki's firing, and salary disputes. But I think they made a better effort to be diplomatic, but from what I heard they Droit de Veto was a difficult recording because they didn't hide their disappointment anymore...
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Koffi probably thought that he would become big headed or even more difficult to handle with the work he did on Loi. Somono was not the only person that got scammed. Champion had the same problem.
Quartier Latin musicians were always afraid of being left behind during European tours after seeing what happened to Willy Bula, Rocky Blanchard and others. They often acted as if everything was fine, but deep down they were not happy. Before Loi, there had never been an idea to create a new band. Musicians always thought about joining another group and most of them were often considering Zaïko. Pathy Bass even said that he was ready to join Zaïko if Koffi would leave him behind for the Loi trip. Even dancer Fifi revealed that she was close to joining Zaïko in the V12 era, but Koffi prevented her from doing so. Somono once revealed in an interview with Malu Kazadi on Schengen Vision in 2011 that Koffi was very happy with his performance during their shows in Gabon. Koffi then told him he was glad he hadn’t joined Zaïko, especially since Willy Bula, Beniko Popolipo and Rocky Blanchard had joined Zaïko at that time.
The musicians felt sorry for Suzuki, but there was no solidarity, because everyone was fighting for their own place. If Suzuki had gone to Olympia, then Modogo or Mamale might have been left behind. Suzuki is still bitter about that. In one interview he said that they should have stood up for him, for example by refusing to perform without him. But he forgot that himself hadn’t done the same when others were left behind. However, nobody else went through what Suzuki experienced. From being jailed in Cameroon after a stopover from Nairobi to Brazzaville, to crossing the Congo- river in canoes with Rocky Blanchard, because of the borders being closed and soldiers shooting thinking that they were rebels. When Koffi returned to Kinshasa, he invited Suzuki to his home to apologize and told him he needed him. But Suzuki refused, saying it was only out of self-interest because of Academia being created and that it was already too late.
The issue with Quartier Latin was that, apart from Beniko Popolipo, both the instrumentalists and singers came from the bottom. They made their name in Quartier Latin and weren’t liking if known musicians would join them. For example, Motingia Tunga, who was considered as one of Congo’s best bass players at that time, joined Quartier Latin after leaving Zaïko, but was quickly given a hard time by Sam Tshintu, Binda Bass, Pathy Bass, and others. They disliked him because of the many favors Koffi gave him and also felt that Blanchard had left because of him. While reality, Koffi simply wanted big stars in his band and no longer liked Blanchard, because of him dating dancers and being big-headed in his eyes. Koffi collaborated with Motingia on the Wake-Up album and had massive respected for the work he delivered for Zaiko in Jetez l’Eponge, Ici Cava, Jamais Sans Nous, Avis de Recherche, Sans Issue and Backline Lesson One with his dancing-skills as well. Motingia soon left and returned to Zaïko after Koffi chose Pathy Bass instead of him for the Loi trip.
The same thing happened with Depitcho, who came from Wenge El Paris where he was basically the number two of the band and had the function as President, since Marie Paul disliked those labels. When he joined Quartier Latin, Sam Tshintu, Suzuki and Bouro Mpela didn’t like him because they felt he became Koffi’s favorite without having proved himself in the band. They were ignoring him. Also nobody wanted to teach him the choreography. This made Koffi sent Tshe-Tshe le Balle to Depitcho’s house to secretly teach him all the steps. Apart from Lebou Kabuya, Depitcho didn’t really have friends in Quartier Latin. When performing in Ivory Coast, Suzuki allegedly did something mysterious to him on stage, which traumatized Depitcho for years (JF Ifonge would often refer to the incident in his first interviews). Years later, late Nseka claimed that Suzuki left because he felt threatened by Depitcho fame and couldn’t match his charisma.
Being somewhat isolated and wanting to stay Koffi’s favorite, Depitcho became like a secret-agent and would snitch about other bandmembers in order to gain more trust and becoming at some point like his confident. He was among those who reported to Koffi what was said in Germany. On one occasion, Sam Tshintu caught them at Koffi’s house in Paris, where they were discussing how to remove Sam as chef d’orchestre once they returned to Kinshasa. When Sam suddenly arrived, they claimed they were only talking about creating the spokesman role with Depitcho. But Sam argued that it made no sense, since Faustin Djata was already the spokesman. This incident was one of the reasons why Sam considered staying in Europe, next to the calls from his family in Kinshasa who warned him that a new team was being recruited to replace them. Still, Koffi managed to get them to Tanzania by using women like Landu Bayaka to lure them into a restaurant/nightclub while they were preparing to run away with Modogo. Koffi then surprised them, which forced them to go to the airport the next day.
During the Droit de Veto-recordings, the musicians no longer hid their disappointment, since most of them were already planning to stay in Europe. Lebou Kabuya and Pathy Bass openly said to their friends that they would stay in Europe. Modogo had the same idea, but wasn’t saying it to anybody. Many were also upset because they expected to earn a lot of money from the Olympia concert. Tensions only grew after the Zenith show, especially when Koffi made it clear that he would not buy Mercedes-Benz cars like Wenge BCBG, who called themselves Wenge Socimat because of the Benz cars they owned. As the tour came to an end, Koffi canceled the last concerts and decided to return immediately to Kinshasa through Tanzania, while most musicians had already spent all their money. Koffi only made things worse by saying he would cut money from their salaries, after that the landlord of Quartier Latin’s residence gave him a large bill for the damages to the house. According to Popolipo, this was caused by Babia and Somono, who sometimes stubbed cigarettes on the walls or benches, burned the floor while making fufu and even vandalized furniture during fights.
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Koffi probably thought that he would become big headed or even more difficult to handle with the work he did on Loi. Somono was not the only person that got scammed. Champion had the same problem.
Quartier Latin musicians were always afraid of being left behind during European tours after seeing what happened to Willy Bula, Rocky Blanchard and others. They often acted as if everything was fine, but deep down they were not happy. Before Loi, there had never been an idea to create a new band. Musicians always thought about joining another group and most of them were often considering Zaïko. Pathy Bass even said that he was ready to join Zaïko if Koffi would leave him behind for the Loi trip. Even dancer Fifi revealed that she was close to joining Zaïko in the V12 era, but Koffi prevented her from doing so. Somono once revealed in an interview with Malu Kazadi on Schengen Vision in 2011 that Koffi was very happy with his performance during their shows in Gabon. Koffi then told him he was glad he hadn’t joined Zaïko, especially since Willy Bula, Beniko Popolipo and Rocky Blanchard had joined Zaïko at that time.
The musicians felt sorry for Suzuki, but there was no solidarity, because everyone was fighting for their own place. If Suzuki had gone to Olympia, then Modogo or Mamale might have been left behind. Suzuki is still bitter about that. In one interview he said that they should have stood up for him, for example by refusing to perform without him. But he forgot that himself hadn’t done the same when others were left behind. However, nobody else went through what Suzuki experienced. From being jailed in Cameroon after a stopover from Nairobi to Brazzaville, to crossing the Congo- river in canoes with Rocky Blanchard, because of the borders being closed and soldiers shooting thinking that they were rebels. When Koffi returned to Kinshasa, he invited Suzuki to his home to apologize and told him he needed him. But Suzuki refused, saying it was only out of self-interest because of Academia being created and that it was already too late.
The issue with Quartier Latin was that, apart from Beniko Popolipo, both the instrumentalists and singers came from the bottom. They made their name in Quartier Latin and weren’t liking if known musicians would join them. For example, Motingia Tunga, who was considered as one of Congo’s best bass players at that time, joined Quartier Latin after leaving Zaïko, but was quickly given a hard time by Sam Tshintu, Binda Bass, Pathy Bass, and others. They disliked him because of the many favors Koffi gave him and also felt that Blanchard had left because of him. While reality, Koffi simply wanted big stars in his band and no longer liked Blanchard, because of him dating dancers and being big-headed in his eyes. Koffi collaborated with Motingia on the Wake-Up album and had massive respected for the work he delivered for Zaiko in Jetez l’Eponge, Ici Cava, Jamais Sans Nous, Avis de Recherche, Sans Issue and Backline Lesson One with his dancing-skills as well. Motingia soon left and returned to Zaïko after Koffi chose Pathy Bass instead of him for the Loi trip.
The same thing happened with Depitcho, who came from Wenge El Paris where he was basically the number two of the band and had the function as President, since Marie Paul disliked those labels. When he joined Quartier Latin, Sam Tshintu, Suzuki and Bouro Mpela didn’t like him because they felt he became Koffi’s favorite without having proved himself in the band. They were ignoring him. Also nobody wanted to teach him the choreography. This made Koffi sent Tshe-Tshe le Balle to Depitcho’s house to secretly teach him all the steps. Apart from Lebou Kabuya, Depitcho didn’t really have friends in Quartier Latin. When performing in Ivory Coast, Suzuki allegedly did something mysterious to him on stage, which traumatized Depitcho for years (JF Ifonge would often refer to the incident in his first interviews). Years later, late Nseka claimed that Suzuki left because he felt threatened by Depitcho fame and couldn’t match his charisma.
Being somewhat isolated and wanting to stay Koffi’s favorite, Depitcho became like a secret-agent and would snitch about other bandmembers in order to gain more trust and becoming at some point like his confident. He was among those who reported to Koffi what was said in Germany. On one occasion, Sam Tshintu caught them at Koffi’s house in Paris, where they were discussing how to remove Sam as chef d’orchestre once they returned to Kinshasa. When Sam suddenly arrived, they claimed they were only talking about creating the spokesman role with Depitcho. But Sam argued that it made no sense, since Faustin Djata was already the spokesman. This incident was one of the reasons why Sam considered staying in Europe, next to the calls from his family in Kinshasa who warned him that a new team was being recruited to replace them. Still, Koffi managed to get them to Tanzania by using women like Landu Bayaka to lure them into a restaurant/nightclub while they were preparing to run away with Modogo. Koffi then surprised them, which forced them to go to the airport the next day.
During the Droit de Veto-recordings, the musicians no longer hid their disappointment, since most of them were already planning to stay in Europe. Lebou Kabuya and Pathy Bass openly said to their friends that they would stay in Europe. Modogo had the same idea, but wasn’t saying it to anybody. Many were also upset because they expected to earn a lot of money from the Olympia concert. Tensions only grew after the Zenith show, especially when Koffi made it clear that he would not buy Mercedes-Benz cars like Wenge BCBG, who called themselves Wenge Socimat because of the Benz cars they owned. As the tour came to an end, Koffi canceled the last concerts and decided to return immediately to Kinshasa through Tanzania, while most musicians had already spent all their money. Koffi only made things worse by saying he would cut money from their salaries, after that the landlord of Quartier Latin’s residence gave him a large bill for the damages to the house. According to Popolipo, this was caused by Babia and Somono, who sometimes stubbed cigarettes on the walls or benches, burned the floor while making fufu and even vandalized furniture during fights.
I don't even think 5eme leaders interact the same way as previous leaders, you can tell by the body language on social media. That's why thirty years pass by and you seem the strong bond in Quartier Latin. I don't know if you'll have an anniversary concert for F'Victeam or others.
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man being a band leader in that era must have been hella stressful