Tabu Ley’s fans to mark 12th anniversary of Rhumba maestro's death
Congolese musician and cultural icon Tabu Ley Rochereau.
What you need to know:
- Tabu Ley is still remembered for some of his mega hit songs such as Mokolo Nakokufa, Kaful Mayay, Sorozo, Maze and Ibrahima.
- To the many of Tabu Ley’s fans, one of the greatest last releases of Afrisa International was the song Muzina, released in 1995.
It will be exactly 12 years on Sunday since legendary Congolese singer and composer Tabu Ley Rochereau literally tuned off forever in a Belgian hospital. The Rhumba maestro was arguably one of the greatest musicians to emerge from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
More than a decade after his death, Tabu Ley is still remembered for some of his mega hit songs such as Mokolo Nakokufa, Kaful Mayay, Sorozo, Maze and Ibrahima.
To the many of Tabu Ley’s fans, one of the greatest last releases of Afrisa International was the song Muzina, released in 1995.
With no major tribute concerts lined up for the anniversary celebrations, Tabu Ley’s fans are set to celebrate some of his greatest compositions online.
Two years ago, US-based singer and composer Wawali Bonane Bungu was in the forefront of releasing a seven-track album, L’incarnation de Tabu Ley, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Tabu Ley’s death.
Tabu Ley was a frequent visitor to Kenya and had a big local fan base. Notably, he introduced songbird Mbilia Bel to the Kenyan audience during a tour, soon after she joined Afrisa International band in late 1981. At the time, the Kamunga song was riding high.
In this undated picture, Rhumba maestro Tabu Ley meets some young fans during a live performance in Nairobi.
Mbilia Bel would later do the lead vocals on the ever-green hit Nakei Nairobi and other hit songs, including Eswi yo Wapi, Nadina and Beyanga.
In the 1980s, Tabu Ley also brought along his two daughters Stella and Collete to study in Nairobi. Stella’s mother, Tete, was the woman Tabu Ley sang about in his 1960s classic, Adios Tete. The song was originally recorded through Grand Kalle and African Jazz, featuring Tabu Ley.
Other former Afrisa International band members still keeping Tabu Ley’s legacy alive include Paris-based singer Faya Tess, guitarists Dino Vangu, Caen Madoka and trumpet player Kabert Kabesele. Faya Tess has done several renditions of Tabu Ley’s songs, among them, Çhristina and Mongali.
Veteran singer Sam Mangwana was among those who made their early careers, singing alongside Tabu Ley in the mid and late 1960s.
The perennial rivalry between Tabu Ley and Franco Luambo Makiadi for nearly three decades was one of the factors that made the Congolese music scene vibrant. They would later do a collabo, titled, Lisanga ya Banganga. The joint album, Le Evenement, recorded in Paris, also featured the hit songs, Ngungi, Omona Wapi and Kabesele in Memorium.
