As with all regions of Africa, a vast variety of musical genres have their origins there. This week's focus, however, will be on the genre typically known as Kwasa Kwasa.
Kwasa Kwasa began in Zaire in the mid-80s and spread like wildfire to surrounding areas. Its popularity was driven by two main factors that worked to capture an audience spanning all ages.
First, the impressive guitar work that forms a crucial part of the pieces had already gained much favor with an older audience, particularly with the wide exposure of artists such as Franco and Diblo Dibala.
Just as important was the explosion of access to television sets in the area, an event that was driven by the availability of cheap electronics worldwide. Music videos then reached a wide number of people, particularly the youth who became hooked on the dance style that accompanied this music.
Somewhat similar to the current shake-your-booty hip-hop version popular with American youths today, the Kwasa Kwasa dance is grounded on rhythmic gyrations of the hips and waist while legs and torso remain relatively still.
The story of Kwasa Kwasa cannot be told without making mention of its inventor, Kanda Bongo Man. Born in 1955 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), Kanda left school at the age of 18 to join a series of local bands in Kinshasa. Unsatisfied with their relative success, he moved to Paris in 1979, where most francophone musicians traveled in search of their big break.
His breakthrough came in 1981 with the recording of "Lyole," which featured the aforementioned Diblo Dibala on lead guitar. As the result of several UK gigs in 1983, Kanda's international career was truly launched. His impact on the genre is still felt as soukous giants today still follow the tradition of calling out "Diblo" before entering into a guitar solo.
Kwasa Kwasa music itself can be characterized as a hybrid of soukous and rhumba. Lacking the deep heavy bass found in kwaito (the last focus of this column), the rhythm is instead dictated by the all-important lead guitar and lighter drumming in the background. Typically, a song will begin with the guitar and drums setting the pace before the vocals enter. Songs then generally build to a climax where a switch in rhythm and the muting of all other segments serve to highlight an intricate guitar solo. Quick and sharp yet rhythmic and varied notes are plucked before the song returns to the initial beat and eventually tapers off.
WAMH broadcasts a sampling of kwasa kwasa and other native African music on Fridays 10-midnight and on Sundays 10-noon.