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Fally Ipupa begs Congolese in diaspora not to protest at his shows

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One of Democratic Republic of Congo’s biggest music stars, Fally Ipupa has begged his countrymen in the diaspora not to use any of his upcoming shows to stage protests against the government of the country.

The star whose hit track, “Un Coup” where he featured Congolese-French singer, Dadju, has been viewed more than 80 million times on YouTube, with his live performances attracting thousands of fans, made the appeal following a protest at one of his gigs at the Kinshasa’s Stadium of Martyrs last year where 11 people reportedly lost their lives while hundreds of others were injured.

Also in 2020 when he performed in Paris, France, there were riots outside the venue of the event, with protesters setting fire to bins and motorbikes, in a protest the French authorities linked to politics back home.

In the same vein, many Congolese in the diaspora have tried to stop musicians from the troubled African country from performing in Europe in order to show their opposition to politicians back home, accusing the big stars of being too close to power and failing to speak out against abuses happening in DR Congo.

As he prepares for his concerts coming up in December in London, Paris and Brussels, and with elections scheduled to hold back home at the same period, the star has pleaded with the Congolese communities not to use his shows to stage a protest.

“Most of the people know now that I don’t do political things. I am just a musician and they have realised that you cannot punish your child all his life,” he said in an interview with the BBC.

Ipupa said he did have some sympathy for those who boycotted his concerts but felt it was time to move past politics and support DR Congo’s music industry.

“I agree that things were happening politically which were not correct in DR Congo, and I’ve always told them that I agree with certain of the protesters who wanted to get the message across and raise awareness in people.

“But now the time has come to say, look guys, we have punished the artists, we have slowed down Congolese culture, it’s time to show the world that we have very, very strong music,” he enthused.

He also feels that “Congolese music has really suffered, losing its place in Europe to music from Nigeria, Ghana and Jamaica” as a result of political turmoil.

“Nigerian Afrobeats artists are now filling the major venues that Congolese artists used to fill 10 years ago,” he lamented.

But he says he is confident that this can change.

“Congolese music is one of the most beautiful and rich, we have many talented artists, so if our brothers and sisters in Europe say no more blocking of Congolese music in Europe, trust me we’re going to take our place in the world,” he predicts.

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Culture

Collabo with Burna Boy enabled me buy house for my mum— Mozambican DJ Tarico

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Mozambican disc jockey and sound-producer, DJ Tarico, has credited Nigeria’s Afrobeats sensation, Burna Boy, with his sudden wealth which enabled him buy a house for his mother.

DJ Tarico attributed a collaboration with the Grammy Awards winning “African Giant” as the turning point in his story and said he would forever be grateful to the Nigerian star.

Speaking with the BBC African Voice on Saturday, DH Tarico said when he came up
with a particularly energetic beat one day, he couldn’t have predicted how it would change his life and that of his two friends.

He said one of his friends, Nelson Tivane, a songwriter and vocalist, came up with the lyric “Yaba Buluku” which was “inspired by the sound of coins jangling in a pocket”, while the other friend, Preck, “belted out that lyric with his gravelly, powerful voice,” with the song becoming an instant hit in their country.

“After we concluded the song, we went to a rural zone and we put a car with a big sound there, and we connected the song on the car and we saw many people dancing and ask ‘who is the owner of this song?’ Then we knew this song was going to be big!” Tarico recalls.

He said he was surprised that
none other than Burna Boy, realised the strength of “Yaba Buluku” and jumped on the remix, a move which had a massive impact on Tarico, Tivane and Preck.

“We were travelling all over Africa. Too many big artists were asking us for features. People started to know our face outside of Mozambique. We became internationals.

“And money! I bought a car, land and a house for my mother.”

The trio who now call themselves “Yaba Buluku Boyz”, have dropped their debut album, “Donsa”, on Friday, and are hoping to ride on the success of the collaboration to reach greatet heights in Africa and globally.

“Donsa”, according to DJ Tarico, “is high-energy, danceable amapiano, and features big African names including Ghana’s dancehall King Shatta Wale, Timaya from Nigeria and Harmonize from Tanzania,” he said.

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Culture

African men run away from single mothers— Joselyn Dumas

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Veteran Ghanaian actress and media personality, Joselyn Dumas, has lamented the fact that most African men shy away from getting married to single mothers due to the added responsibilities they will be saddled with.

The actress who made the assertion in her recent podcast, “Keeping it Real with Joselyn Dumas, The Perfect Picture”, opened up on the challenges of many single mothers who are struggling to find a partner because of societal biases.

In the podcast, Dumas who shared a personal story of a male friend whom she said refused to settle down with a lady because she had a child.

According to her, the friend named Anthony, firmly stated that it wasn’t his thing to be with a ‘born one’ or ‘born two’.

“He said B1, B2, I’m not in and I said to myself, ‘this is the reason why a lot of single mothers are single with their children.

“Now his reason was, why am I going to raise somebody’s child? That’s not my bloodline. He doesn’t have my DNA in him. Why am I now going to help someone’s bloodline grow? What about mine?” she said.

Dumas who is a single mother, noted that Anthony’s mindset is a “reflection of the views of a larger majority of people who don’t want to have meaningful relationship with single mothers.”

She also criticised what she termed as the double standard in society’s views on raising non-biological children, arguing that it should not be seen differently from adoption.

“I have a child but these men won’t even ask you, they don’t even care why you have a child. You’ve had seven miscarriages when you got married. You meet a guy, you were dating and you got pregnant, are you going to abort the baby because you aren’t married?

“He doesn’t want the child, are you going to throw the child away? No! You can raise the child. It takes a village to raise the child, so even if you don’t have a job, you will get support. This is part of the sacrifice you have to make regardless of what has happened,” she said.

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