continental drift 2/22/23: the congo!
Welcome back to continental drift! This week I am joined by Sakina, my friend and the very first guest star of Continental Drift, who will be joining us for today’s episode on the Congo. Listen to the playlist here, and listen back to the episode here.
The Congo is a region in Central Sub-saharan Africa divided into two countries: The Republic of Congo and Democratic Republic of the Congo. The name “Congo” comes from Bantu tribe “Bakongo” which inhabits both regions. Under colonization, the Congo was divided into Congo-Brazzaville, colonized by the French, and Congo-Kinshasa, colonized by the Belgians. Upon independence in 1960, the countries split and became Republic of the Congo and DROTC, renamed Zaire in 1971, eventually renamed Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1997.
The DROTC is the 2nd largest country by area in Africa, and comes in at #11 in the world. By contrast, ROC, its neighbor to the west, is just 12% of its total area. DROTC is the 14th most populated country in the world, with 108 million, and ROC has 5.5 million (118th). The national language of both countries is French, with a number of regional languages also recognized and widely spoken (such as lingala).
During WWII, Congo was predominated by rumba. Camille Feruzi is often credited with popularizing the genre in the 1930s. Cuban music was starting to fuse with African music in Cuba, which was then played over Belgian radio in the Congo.
Rumba segment:
Cheka Sana High // Verckys & L’Orchestre Veve (psychedelic rumba)
Kahagwe // Les Pionniers De La Musique Congolaise De Leopoldville A Kinshasa, Camille Feruzi
Tangana // Orchestre Cobantou
Biwela-Biwela // Grand Kalle, L’African Team
Soukous is a Congolese music genre that took inspiration from 1950s cuban rumba rhythms. Combined with jazz and Kwassa Kwassa dance rhythms, with the addition of electric guitar, soukous was born. It is sung in various Congolese languages, including French, but also Spanish. Soukous started in Kinshasa but then spread throughout Africa and eventually to France.
Soukous segment:
Rokiatou // Loketo, Sahlomon
Duniya // Yondo Sister, Soukous Stars
Douceur // Mbilia Bel
Awilo Longomba – Karolina (2006) (4:26)
Awilo Longomba was a drummer in Loketo before starting a solo career. His father was in Tout Puissant OK Jazz, a Congolese rumba group.
Yondo sister is sometimes referred to as the “queen of soukous,” and is known for dancing Kwassa Kwassa. Kwassa Kwassa is a dance closely associated with soukous that involves moving the hips back and forth while moving the hands with the hips. It was created by a mechanic named Jeanora in Kinshasa, who says the dance imitates the use of a gearshift. The name comes from kikongo, meaning “I’m working.” Check it out in this video.
Modern segment:
Innoss’B Ft Diamond Platnumz – Yope Remix (Official Music Video)
This is one of the most viewed songs in African history (204 M views as of today). Innos’B singing in Lingala and Diamond Platnumz in Swahili. Innos’B recently performed a private concert for JLo.
Trouvez-la moi.. // DADJU (find her for me)
