Released in 1999 in the Ivory Coast all this time I thought it was recorded in 1997 and released in 1998.

It was also recorded in 1997 and released in 1998 which made Wenge El Paris ending up with alot of prices that year (best band, best star, best singer, best atalaku). I think that mr Ndiaye was late with the distribution in other african countries or maybe that they made typing error. Because I remember that back in the 90s, some Congolese albums would be released 1 year or months later than the official release in Dr Congo or Europe.

It was also recorded in 1997 and released in 1998 which made Wenge El Paris ending up with alot of prices that year (best band, best star, best singer, best atalaku). I think that mr Ndiaye was late with the distribution in other african countries or maybe that they made typing error. Because I remember that back in the 90s, some Congolese albums would be released 1 year or months later than the official release in Dr Congo or Europe.

During that period EL Paris had performed memorable concerts but things turned sour after the release of Couvre Feu.

not really they had still good times (except the departure of Manda Chante) and big events (at YMCA against Werrason, Stade Tata Raphael, etc.). The only thing that was missing an album to counter the massive succes TH and Solola Bien, their silence made them lose some fans towards Werrason (back at that time you had every year new albums on the market).  It was from the moment that they came in Europe that everything started to go wrong.

That's the problem of going quiet you're forgotten when you come back is a huge buzz if you have strong determination. The thing that disappointed me was their quality was never appreciated during the times of Manda Chantea and KO Debout

That's the problem of going quiet you're forgotten when you come back is a huge buzz if you have strong determination. The thing that disappointed me was their quality was never appreciated during the times of Manda Chantea and KO Debout

No, Wenge El Paris was really appreciated during the time that they were with Manda Chante. Their second return to Kinshasa in 1993 created a huge buzz, giving then Wenge Musica 4x4 a hard time. Then when they released Armaggedon (Le Monde a l'Envers) it brought them back on the map (after the reconcilation with Kongolu Mobutu) with Manda's song Ibrahim being a huge succes in Kinshasa, Manda Chante receiving the award of best singer and Wenge El Paris the award of best band. Coming with big events at Stade Tata Raphael, Palais du Peuple, Rond Point Victoire, etc. The following year they released Couvre Feu which a bigger succes and them being for a long time n1 on the music charts until that Cocktail, Intervention Rapide & Titanic were released. The problem of Wenge El Paris in that erea was that they were blocked in Kinshasa, they couldn't go back to Europe since that Francis Kalombo scammed them and the conflict with Kongolo Mobutu and them also not having papers. This all made them being mocked by them Wenge 4x4 "bakangami na kin", etc. In 1995 musicpromoter Badouin Bikoko had them bring Wenge El Paris to Paris, so Marie Paul went along with Manda Chante and Kongolo Mobutu to Europe to sign contracts for their tour and went back to Kinshasa (bringing with them JDT Mulopwe who stayed in Europe back in 1993). But for some reasons, the tour got cancelled which made them record their album months later in 1996 in South Africa with only the half of them team (the other half staying in Kinshasa because of the lack of visa, guys like JDT, Pitshou Santiango, etc. missing ). Some tourpromoters wanted to bring them in 1998 and 1999 to Europe, but it never worked, with some of them speculating that they were cursed because  they were rehearsing at 1,2,3 (Franco's former dancing bar and rehearsing place).

The problem of KO Debout was that it wasn't well promoted. It had their official donor PDG Nkonku Costa as excucitive producer who hadn't any experience with the music-business (Marie Paul then accussing Werrason and his staff for doing nkisi against his album lol and that they corrupted Claude Mussay who was the distributor). Another thing was that he was in open conflict with Zacharie Bababaswe just after the release of Ko Debout in 2001. The conflict killed the promotion of the album even more and put Marie Paul really in a bad daylight (he had already a bad image, even in his glorydays). Zacle then went to show throught his show Feux Vert how Marie Paul had a big mpiaka at Concert Nobles in Brussels and started to mock him about his reponse in an interview where they asked him what his favorite fruit is, saying to the journalist "mon fruit prefere est le beignets" (my favorite fruit is the donut) and that his wife is a businessman (while he had to say businesswoman). The interview made him lose alot of fans. But I think that if Wenge El Paris was still in Kinshasa, Ko Debout would be a succes. Because he had their a strong fanbase (called ba ndimi) there, giving mostly those open-air concerts, while in Europe his succes wasn't big very since he left in 1993 despite his glory-years in Kinshasa. Also Manda Chante, so there weren't influent bana ndjili who wanted to support their band.

Some people say that the flop was also like karma because Marie Paul abandoned those who helped him during those 7 years in Kinshasa. A good example is Belis Mfumu Luvutula (RIP), the first president of Wenge Musica 4x4. It was because of him that Wenge El Paris had the right to use the name Wenge. He was also arrested and slept in jail because of them because he tried to promote Wenge Aile Paris in Kinshasa and creating fanclubs back in 1991 along his friend Jules Biselele which made Didier Masela, Werrason and JB Mpiana furious. He was on the list to go to Europe with Wenge El Paris in december 2000, but they left him behind and let Pitshou Santiango travel with his passeport to France. Or atalaku Doukoure who said that the threw all those strong nkisi away when they left him behind at beach ngobila when they went to Brazzaville to go from there towards Paris.

That's the problem of going quiet you're forgotten when you come back is a huge buzz if you have strong determination. The thing that disappointed me was their quality was never appreciated during the times of Manda Chantea and KO Debout

No, Wenge El Paris was really appreciated during the time that they were with Manda Chante. Their second return to Kinshasa in 1993 created a huge buzz, giving then Wenge Musica 4x4 a hard time. Then when they released Armaggedon (Le Monde a l'Envers) it brought them back on the map (after the reconcilation with Kongolu Mobutu) with Manda's song Ibrahim being a huge succes in Kinshasa, Manda Chante receiving the award of best singer and Wenge El Paris the award of best band. Coming with big events at Stade Tata Raphael, Palais du Peuple, Rond Point Victoire, etc. The following year they released Couvre Feu which a bigger succes and them being for a long time n1 on the music charts until that Cocktail, Intervention Rapide & Titanic were released. The problem of Wenge El Paris in that erea was that they were blocked in Kinshasa, they couldn't go back to Europe since that Francis Kalombo scammed them and the conflict with Kongolo Mobutu and them also not having papers. This all made them being mocked by them Wenge 4x4 "bakangami na kin", etc. In 1995 musicpromoter Badouin Bikoko had them bring Wenge El Paris to Paris, so Marie Paul went along with Manda Chante and Kongolo Mobutu to Europe to sign contracts for their tour and went back to Kinshasa (bringing with them JDT Mulopwe who stayed in Europe back in 1993). But for some reasons, the tour got cancelled which made them record their album months later in 1996 in South Africa with only the half of them team (the other half staying in Kinshasa because of the lack of visa, guys like JDT, Pitshou Santiango, etc. missing ). Some tourpromoters wanted to bring them in 1998 and 1999 to Europe, but it never worked, with some of them speculating that they were cursed because  they were rehearsing at 1,2,3 (Franco's former dancing bar and rehearsing place).

The problem of KO Debout was that it wasn't well promoted. It had their official donor PDG Nkonku Costa as excucitive producer who hadn't any experience with the music-business (Marie Paul then accussing Werrason and his staff for doing nkisi against his album lol and that they corrupted Claude Mussay who was the distributor). Another thing was that he was in open conflict with Zacharie Bababaswe just after the release of Ko Debout in 2001. The conflict killed the promotion of the album even more and put Marie Paul really in a bad daylight (he had already a bad image, even in his glorydays). Zacle then went to show throught his show Feux Vert how Marie Paul had a big mpiaka at Concert Nobles in Brussels and started to mock him about his reponse in an interview where they asked him what his favorite fruit is, saying to the journalist "mon fruit prefere est le beignets" (my favorite fruit is the donut) and that his wife is a businessman (while he had to say businesswoman). The interview made him lose alot of fans. But I think that if Wenge El Paris was still in Kinshasa, Ko Debout would be a succes. Because he had their a strong fanbase (called ba ndimi) there, giving mostly those open-air concerts, while in Europe his succes wasn't big very since he left in 1993 despite his glory-years in Kinshasa. Also Manda Chante, so there weren't influent bana ndjili who wanted to support their band.

Just to be on the same page, back in 1995 a promoter brung Marie Paul and El Paris to Europe that's when Rento Vena and Zing Zong decided to stay in Europe but something did not work for Marie Paul, Manda and Depitcho so they ended up in South Africa. And in 1996 they recorded le monde a envers with Maika Munan?

Rento Vena stayed in 1993 because he didn't trust Kalombo's contract along with JDL, Lidjona and Jus d'Ete Mulopwe. Zing Zong went with Wenge El Paris to Kinshasa but came some years later back to France on his own after a conflict with Marie Paul. Rento Vena even made an interview about that with Nolly Tambu.



Marie Paul only with with Manda Chante and Kongolo Mobutu (Wenge El Paris was part of Yoshad Productions) to Europe to sign contracts with Baudoin Bikoko, but when they went back to Kinshasa to prepare the tour and wait for the visa the tour got cancelled. So after some months they decided to record the album in South Africa after that they got contacted by some concert-promoters who were living. But they hadn't many visa's, so they went only with 3 singers, 1 atalaku, 2 guitarists, 1 bass players and 2 drummers and the rest staying in Kinshasa under the direction of JDT, giving some concerts but then getting problems with the justice and Mbuta Kis Kisolokele for using the name Wenge. The team of Marie Paul performed first in Luanda (Angola), went to South Africa for some concerts, getting joined by Maika Munan who helped them with the recordings of Armadeggon, then they went to Zimbabwe and returned back to Kinshasa. With the album getting released months later (I think that there was a problem with the distribution).

Did Maika Munan travel to record the album or he programmed the drums in Paris because it's difficult to deliver program machines in different countries?

Maika Munan travelled to record album in South Africa, everything was done there. South Africa they have modern studios. It isn't like Kinshasa. Albums like Anti Terro and Attentat got also recorded there.

The quality of that album was good it really you can achieve something if you have 3 vocalists, 2 guitarists, 1 bass players and 2 drummers including percussionists.

That's the problem of going quiet you're forgotten when you come back is a huge buzz if you have strong determination. The thing that disappointed me was their quality was never appreciated during the times of Manda Chantea and KO Debout

No, Wenge El Paris was really appreciated during the time that they were with Manda Chante. Their second return to Kinshasa in 1993 created a huge buzz, giving then Wenge Musica 4x4 a hard time. Then when they released Armaggedon (Le Monde a l'Envers) it brought them back on the map (after the reconcilation with Kongolu Mobutu) with Manda's song Ibrahim being a huge succes in Kinshasa, Manda Chante receiving the award of best singer and Wenge El Paris the award of best band. Coming with big events at Stade Tata Raphael, Palais du Peuple, Rond Point Victoire, etc. The following year they released Couvre Feu which a bigger succes and them being for a long time n1 on the music charts until that Cocktail, Intervention Rapide & Titanic were released. The problem of Wenge El Paris in that erea was that they were blocked in Kinshasa, they couldn't go back to Europe since that Francis Kalombo scammed them and the conflict with Kongolo Mobutu and them also not having papers. This all made them being mocked by them Wenge 4x4 "bakangami na kin", etc. In 1995 musicpromoter Badouin Bikoko had them bring Wenge El Paris to Paris, so Marie Paul went along with Manda Chante and Kongolo Mobutu to Europe to sign contracts for their tour and went back to Kinshasa (bringing with them JDT Mulopwe who stayed in Europe back in 1993). But for some reasons, the tour got cancelled which made them record their album months later in 1996 in South Africa with only the half of them team (the other half staying in Kinshasa because of the lack of visa, guys like JDT, Pitshou Santiango, etc. missing ). Some tourpromoters wanted to bring them in 1998 and 1999 to Europe, but it never worked, with some of them speculating that they were cursed because  they were rehearsing at 1,2,3 (Franco's former dancing bar and rehearsing place).

The problem of KO Debout was that it wasn't well promoted. It had their official donor PDG Nkonku Costa as excucitive producer who hadn't any experience with the music-business (Marie Paul then accussing Werrason and his staff for doing nkisi against his album lol and that they corrupted Claude Mussay who was the distributor). Another thing was that he was in open conflict with Zacharie Bababaswe just after the release of Ko Debout in 2001. The conflict killed the promotion of the album even more and put Marie Paul really in a bad daylight (he had already a bad image, even in his glorydays). Zacle then went to show throught his show Feux Vert how Marie Paul had a big mpiaka at Concert Nobles in Brussels and started to mock him about his reponse in an interview where they asked him what his favorite fruit is, saying to the journalist "mon fruit prefere est le beignets" (my favorite fruit is the donut) and that his wife is a businessman (while he had to say businesswoman). The interview made him lose alot of fans. But I think that if Wenge El Paris was still in Kinshasa, Ko Debout would be a succes. Because he had their a strong fanbase (called ba ndimi) there, giving mostly those open-air concerts, while in Europe his succes wasn't big very since he left in 1993 despite his glory-years in Kinshasa. Also Manda Chante, so there weren't influent bana ndjili who wanted to support their band.

Marie Paul really slipped what he said in the interview very embarrassing.