Editing Soukous (section)

===1980s and the Paris scene===
[[File:Papa Wemba and Koffi Olomide, 1988.jpg|thumb|[[Koffi Olomide|Koffi Olomidé]] and [[Papa Wemba]], 1988]]
As sociopolitical unrest persisted in Zaire throughout the 1980s, numerous musicians sought refuge across Africa, with a considerable number relocating to Belgium, France, and the United Kingdom. Some traversed through Central and East Africa before ultimately establishing their operational bases in Europe.<ref name=":112">{{Cite book |last=Davies |first=Carole Boyce |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9ETPEAAAQBAJ&dq=soukous+in+London&pg=PA849 |title=Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora [3 volumes]: Origins, Experiences, and Culture |date=29 July 2008 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA |isbn=978-1-85109-705-0 |location=New York City, New York State, United States |page=849}}</ref><ref name=":232">{{Cite book |last=Trillo |first=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B6dEW14KykIC |title=The Rough Guide to Kenya |publisher=Rough Guides |year=2016 |isbn=9781848369733 |location=London, United Kingdom |page=598}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Stewart |first=Gary |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7VmcEAAAQBAJ |title=Rumba on the River: A History of the Popular Music of the Two Congos |date=5 May 2020 |publisher=Verso Books |isbn=978-1-78960-911-0 |location=Brooklyn, New York City, New York State}}</ref><ref name=":732">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UvtHAox4T5EC |title=Let Spirit Speak!: Cultural Journeys Through the African Diaspora |date=June 2012 |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=9781438442174 |editor-last=Valdés |editor-first=Vanessa K. |location=Albany, New York City, New York State |pages=40–41}}</ref><ref name=":842">{{Cite news |last=Hodgkinson |first=Will |date=8 July 2010 |title=How African music made it big in Colombia |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jul/08/columbia-african-music-palenque |access-date=23 August 2023 |work=The Guardian |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Soukous gained traction in Brussels, Paris, and London, emerging as the only sub-Saharan African genre universally embraced in Belgium and France.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Daoudi |first=Bouziane |date=August 29, 1998 |title=World. Le chanteur ex-zaïrois en concert à l'Olympia. Koffi Olomidé, Rambo de la rumba. Koffi Olomidé. Samedi à 23 heures à l'Olympia, 28, bd des Capucines, Paris IXe. Tél.: 01 47 42 25 49. Album: "Loi", Sonodisc. |trans-title=World. The ex-Zairian singer in concert at the Olympia. Koffi Olomidé, Rambo of rumba. Koffi Olomide. Saturday at 11 p.m. at the Olympia, 28, bd des Capucines, Paris 9th. Tel.: 01 47 42 25 49. Album: “Law”, Sonodisc. |url=https://www.liberation.fr/culture/1998/08/29/world-le-chanteur-ex-zairois-en-concert-a-l-olympia-koffi-olomide-rambo-de-la-rumba-koffi-olomide-sa_244600/ |access-date=2023-12-29 |website=Libération |language=fr |publication-place=Paris, France}}</ref> According to Congolese columnist [[:fr:Achille Ngoye|Achille Ngoye]], Belgium offered a significant permanent operational base for numerous Zairean artists.<ref name=":1" /> Orchestras such as Los Nickelos, Yéyé National, and Les Mongali, predominantly composed of students, garnered significant attention in Belgium.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Mbu-Mputu |first=Norbert X |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mfWiDwAAQBAJ&dq=Y%C3%A9y%C3%A9+National+brussels&pg=PA331 |title=L'AUTRE LUMUMBA. Peuple du CONGO: Histoire, résistances, assassinats et victoires sur le front de la Guerre froide |publisher= |isbn=978-0-244-77422-6 |location=Morrisville, North Carolina, United States |pages=331 |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mLQ4AQAAIAAJ&q=Los+Nickelos+brussels+1980s |title=The World of African Music: Volume 1 |date=1992 |publisher=Pluto Press |isbn=978-0-948390-03-6 |editor-last=Graham |editor-first=Ronnie |location=London, England, United Kingdom |pages=130 |language=en}}</ref> Uncle Yorgho, a former member of [[TPOK Jazz|OK Jazz]], established a distribution epicenter for Zairean musical repertoire in Brussels in July 1980 (Visa 80).<ref name=":1" /> Meanwhile, [[Dieudonné Kabongo]], Dizzy Mandjeku, and [[Ntesa Dalienst]] rose to prominence due to the bankruptcy of Belgian record label Fonior!, which prompted many Zairean artists like [[Orchestre Stukas|Lita Bembo]] and Matima to seek reputable distribution entities in Belgium, while others found solace in performing in religious choirs, which frequently toured [[Holland]].<ref name=":1" />
[[File:Nyboma, 1973.jpg|thumb|218x218px|[[Nyboma]] in 1973|left]]
Soukous was chosen by [[Island Records]] producer [[Ben Mandelson]] and Togolese entrepreneur Richard Dick as the title of a 1982 compilation, ''Sound D'Afrique II: Soukous''. The compilation included music from [[Mali]] and [[Cameroon]] alongside "Madeleina," a track from Pablo 'Porthos' Lubadika's 1981 album ''Ma Coco'', which gained significant attention in Europe.<ref name=":28"/> Zaïko Langa Langa introduced the role of a dedicated hypeman—known as ''[[atalaku]]'' or ''[[animateur]]''—into the ensemble of singers, setting a trend that almost every band on the Congolese music scene adopted, making atalakus emblematic of soukous as well as Congolese rumba.<ref name=":28" /> Zaïko Langa Langa achieved significant success, becoming the third generation of Congolese music as many founding members split off to form their own groups, which in turn splintered into more groups: [[Isifi Lokole|Isife Lokole]], Grand Zaïko Wa Wa, [[Langa Langa Stars]], Clan Langa Langa, [[Choc Stars]], and Anti-Choc among them.<ref name=":28" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lavaine |first=Bertrand |date=30 September 2020 |title=Zaïko Langa Langa, une histoire congolaise |trans-title=Zaïko Langa Langa, a Congolese story |url=https://musique.rfi.fr/rumba-congolaise/20200930-zaiko-langa-langa-une-histoire-congolaise |access-date=27 May 2024 |website=RFI Musique |language=fr |publication-place=Paris, France}}</ref> [[Papa Wemba]] and [[Viva La Musica]] made the longest-lasting impact, partly due to Wemba's ability to maintain a presence in both Paris and Kinshasa with dual bands, one focusing on soukous and another featuring French session players for international pop. In Parisian studios, the seben guitars blended with the tight drum machines and synths of [[zouk]] and funky disco [[makossa]] on numerous records.<ref name=":28" /><ref name=":16">{{Cite book |last=Stewart |first=Gary |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7VmcEAAAQBAJ&q=congolese+rumba+on+the+river |title=Rumba on the River: A History of the Popular Music of the Two Congos |date=2020-05-05 |publisher=Verso Books |isbn=978-1-78960-911-0 |location=Brooklyn, New York City |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":17">{{Cite web |last1=Vogel |first1=Christoph |last2=Network |first2=part of the Guardian Africa |date=2013-08-23 |title=Say my name: How 'shout-outs' keep Congolese musicians in the money |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/23/congo-musicians-kinshasa-rumba |access-date=2023-08-27 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref> However, this fusion received criticism for deviating from authentic Congolese styles. Notable critics like [[Nyboma]] argued that the music had become commercialized and lacked emotional depth, calling for a return to the fundamentals of "beautiful melodies and highly tuned voices."<ref name="Stewart">{{cite book |last1=Stewart |first1=Gary |url=https://archive.org/details/rumbaonriverhist00stew |title=Rumba on the river : a history of the popular music of the two Congos |date=2000 |publisher=Verso |isbn=1-85984-744-7 |url-access=registration}}</ref>{{rp|384–385}}<ref name="Afropop">Public Radio International, Afropop Worldwide, program on "The Four Stars," recorded February 1996 from KSKA Anchorage.</ref>
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| footer            = The Loketo group, established by [[Aurlus Mabélé]] and [[Diblo Dibala]], emerged as a prominent soukous band during the 1980s and 1990s.
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The influx of Zairean artists to France catalyzed the proliferation of Parisian studios as epicenters for soukous production, with an increasing reliance on synthesizers and [[Electronic musical instrument|electronic instruments]]. Some artists continued to record for the Congolese market, but others abandoned the demands of the Kinshasa public and set out to pursue new audiences.<ref name=":16" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":17" /> A sizable Zairean community established itself in France and [[Switzerland]], with Zairean artists conducting training programs in the country.<ref name=":1" /> [[Kanda Bongo Man]], another Paris-based artist, pioneered fast, short tracks conducive for play on dance floors worldwide, popularly known as [[kwassa kwassa]], after the dance moves popularized in his and other artists' music videos. This music appealed to Africans and to new audiences as well. Artists like [[Diblo Dibala]], [[Aurlus Mabélé]], Tchicl Tchicaya, Jeannot Bel Musumbu, [[M'bilia Bel]], [[Yondo Sister]], Tinderwet, [[Loketo]], Rigo Star, Nyboma, [[Madilu System]], Soukous Stars and veterans like [[Pépé Kallé]] and [[Koffi Olomide|Koffi Olomidé]] followed suit. Soon Paris became home to talented studio musicians who recorded for the African and Caribbean markets and filled out bands for occasional tours.<ref name=":11" /><ref name="Kanda Bongo Man dances a new dance">{{Cite news |date=September 29, 2014 |title=Kanda Bongo Man dances a new dance |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-africa-29418790 |access-date=2023-08-27}}</ref><ref name=":29" /> Diblo Dibala and Aurlus Mabélé dominated the clubs with "Africa Moussou", creating a hyperactive style of super-speed soukous, dubbed ''TGV soukous'' by fans, alluding to France's high-speed trains.<ref name=":28" />

Swede-Swede, an ensemble exclusively employing traditional instruments, operates out of Belgium, while Les Malo, primarily comprising former instructors from the [[National Institute of Arts, Kinshasa|National Institute of Arts]] in Kinshasa, specializes in Afro-jazz in [[Lyon]].<ref name=":1" /> [[Tshala Muana]] gained prominence in Africa and Europe for her [[Luba people|Luba]] traditional hip-swaying dance known as ''mutuashi'', which make waves across African stadiums and earned her the moniker of "Queen of Mutuashi".<ref name=":1" /> Other female vocalists such as Déesse Mukangi, Djena Mandako, Faya Tess, Isa, and Abby Surya garnered widespread recognition.<ref name=":1" />