By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
DRC musician Koffi Olomide Wednesday landed in Harare to record a collaboration with Roki under Passion Java Records.
The legendary soukus, singer, dancer, producer and composer was received at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport and as usual sporting his colourful designer wear.
The collaboration is history in the making as Koffi Olomide has never collaborated with Zimbabwean artists.
His collaboration on Waah with Tanzanian Bongo Flavour superstar Diamond Platnumz has so far streamed over 75 million views on YouTube.
Koffi Olomide (64) has 769 000 subscribers while Diamond Platnumz has 5.33 million subscribers. It there remains to be seen how much value Roki will earn from the collaboration with Koffi Olomide.
About Koffi Olomide, he was born Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba. He is the founder of the Quartier Latin International orchestra with many notable artists, including Fally Ipupa and Ferré Gola.
Upon his return to the Congo in the 1970s, Koffi joined Papa Wemba‘s band, Viva la Musica, initially as a composer and songwriter, and later as a lead vocalist. In 1986, he formed his band known as Quartier Latin International, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2006. Since then, he has performed and recorded both with the group and by himself.
Over the years, he built up a faithful fan base internationally, particularly in Africa and Europe. Koffi popularized the slower style of Soukous, which he dubbed Tcha Tcho. His music can be quite controversial, taking on current events and topics considered taboo in some conservative societies.
He also participated in the salsa music project Africando. For his effort, Effrakata, released in 2001, Koffi received four awards on a single night at the annual Kora Awards in South Africa for 2002 and 2003, including the award for Best African Artist, which he won in 1998.
More recently, he won the Kora Award for “Best African Artist of The Decade”. This established one of his many aliases, the ‘Quadra Kora Man.
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