Question about the background and creation of songs. Currently listening to Voyage Mboso by Wenge 4x4 which is credited to Adolphe Dominguez. When someone is credited a song what does that mean specifically. In this case would it mean that Adolphe Dominguez came out with everyones verses as well as the chorus and guided the instrumentalists to a specific melody he had in his head? Do they come up with the instrumentalisation of a song first and then come up with lyrics?

In this same case Im also assuming the atalaku comes up with his own content, does the instrumentalisation come out first and then the atalaku finds something to fit it. Or how do the guitarist and the atalaku make it work.

Also Voyage Mboso is the song that embodies Wenge the most at the peak of their art in my humble opinion do we all agree on tha?  Flawless rumba part followed by an angry sebene. Best Werra vocals EVER and Roberto in rare form. Any song could be better???

I'm not sure, but I think that when an artist is credited with a song, he usually bought this song from a lyricist who sold him either the melody and the lyrics together or only the lyrics ...

For atalakus, I dont know at all

Voyage is one of the greatest classic of Wenge but I think they have reached the peak of their art with Les Anges Adorables vol.1 and 2. Each song of Wenge has its particularity, its difficult to know what is their best song

In the Congolese music-scene when a song is credited to an artist (auteur/compositeur) then it means that the text of the lead-singer and refrain are from the artist. The vocals of singers, melodies of the instrumentalists and cries doesn't count. The singers & instrumentalists comes with their own contents.

In the 80s, 90s and 2000s, the guitarists were coming with the instrumentalisation first and the atalaku then fiding somehing to fit in. But now its the opposite. Hence why alot of sebenes are flopping today. Since 2006/07, it are the atalaku's who are directing the guitarists which makes sebenes having to much transitions and breaks, because of the atalaku (Lobeso, Brigade, Gentamicine, Bercy, etc.) coming with "aaah rrrrrrrrr" and the lead guitarist having to stop with the rhythm guitarist and they keyboard-player taking it over.

By making a song they come first with the lyrics and the instrumentalisation of the song later. That's why Maika Munan, Souzy Kaseya and Sec Bidens were crediting themselves as composer of Papa Wemba songs, because of them coming with the instrumentalisation. Alain Makaba did the same thing on Anges Adorables volume 1 & 2.





The real songwriter of Voyage is Pascal Poba.

Voyage Mboso is seen as the best song of Wenge 4x4 and I think also that it is the best song, but I prefer Mon Ami Coboss of JB Mpiana and Tchatcho Mbala "Jugement par Defaut" of Werrason (which is about to not judge people from far, but to aproach the person and know how he is). The old generation was also liking Voyage, because they saw that it was the only song that made sense lol.




I think that Werrason's best vocal in Wenge 4x4 is the one he made in Coco Madimba "tolingana" followed by the one he did in Kaskin for his wife Mampata "ata ba tongi nga....".