Rumba treat for city fans as Ferre Gola returns for show at Bomas

Rumba fans in Nairobi are in for a big treat early next month. Top Congolese crooner Ferre Gola is scheduled to perform at the Bomas of Kenya on November 7. He will be backed by a 17-member band.

Arguably the most promising ballad singer among the new-generation  rumba musicians, Ferre is currently one of the most sought-after vocalists on the Lingala music scene.

He is among the Congolese musicians at the heart of the resurgence of the popular rumba beat that  has seen great fusion and modernisation, but with great emphasis still on vocal prowess and the solo guitar.

Ferre will be returning to Nairobi, where he last performed in 2009, to underline the fact that the DR Congo remains the sanctuary of African music. Kinshasa is still producing plenty of talent ready to replace such fallen greats as Franco, Tabu Ley, Ndombe Opetum and Madilu System.

In Ferre’s current league is his big rival, Fally Ipupa, and two astounding young women, Barbara Kanam and Meje30. These musicians give Congolese music a really smooth, modern and sophisticated feel.

The soft-spoken Ferre made his debut in 1995, with Werrason’s Orchestre Wenge Musica Maison Mère in Kinshasa. He was first recognised for his composition, Vita-Imana, off Wenge Musica’s blockbuster album, Solola Bien. He stayed with the group for seven years.

On going solo, he assembled a group of talented singers, including his own protege, Shikito, and Bill Clinton Kalonji, to record  various tracks.Among the  vocalists was Heritier. In 2004, he teamed up with Koffi Olomide in the album Danger de Mort, in which he composed the song Insecticide. After a while, he left to pursue a solo career.

AUTHENTIC RHUMBA

Ferre’s biggest hit among his growing legion of Kenyan fans is the curiously named, Kamasutra, a song about a woman who is waiting for a man to fall back in love with her. The song has upped his competition with Fally Ipupa, who is better known for his sexy dance on stage. Ferre manages to pay tribute to Franco at some point in the song. Kamasutra has been hogging space on FM radio stations and is a favourite on the club circuit.

Jules Nsana of Nsana Promotions, the promoter of Ferre’s upcoming Kenyan tour, was recently in Kinshasa to seal the deal. He said Ferre would arrive in Nairobi on November 4.

“Ever since Ferre’s last visit to Kenya in 2009, many of his fans have been eager to watch him perform here again, hence my decision to bring him back,”  he said.

Advance tickets for  the show are available online through www.jambolife.com at Sh2,000 (ordinary) and Sh3,000 (VIP) each. There will be an additional Sh500 for fans paying at the gate.

“We have chosen to have online booking  for the convenience of fans and to avoid a  last minute rush,”  Nsana said.

Ferre will be visiting Kenya after a recent successful tour of Angola dubbed ‘Atlantico Luanda 2015.’

His cover versions of rumba legends Grand Kalle Jeff, Franco, Tabu Ley, and King Kester Emeneya have further enhanced his stature  as an all-round musician.

He has also done duets with some of his peers, including former Wenge BCBG singer Alain Mpela, Fally Ipupa, Koffi Olomide and Soleil Wanga.

Unlike Fally, who has opted to diversify into an up-tempo techno beat, Ferre has stuck to the mid-paced rumba beat. His other popular songs include Boit Noire, 100 Kilos, Pa Felly, Love, Panzi Likolo and Pakadjuma.

Ferre’s first visit to Kenya was in 1997, as a  member of the Original Wenge Musica band, which featured stalwarts Werrason and JB Mpiana. Soon  after that tour, the group split. Ferre, Didier Masela, and Adolphe Dominquez remained with Werrason in the Wenge Musica Maison Mère, while Mpiana formed Wenge BCBG.

Mpiana’s group featured Alain Makaba, soloist Bukina Faso (Mboka Liya), Alain Mpela, and Blaise Bula, among others.

For Congolese music fans, the Wenge Musica beat was most alluring and it is no wonder that many other groups slowly gravitated towards it in some of their recordings in the 90s.