The Congolese musician Papa Wemba, known as the “Father of Congolese rumba,” died at age 66 after collapsing on stage during a concert in Ivory Coast.
Ivorian Minister of Culture, Baudouin Banza Mukalay, confirmed Sunday the death of the musician. He said he is a “great loss for the country and throughout Africa”.
Images of the concert in Ivory Coast shows his fellow running alongside presentation after the musician fell in front of thousands of fans . He was taken to a nearby clinic but could not be revived. It was not known at the moment the cause of death.
“This is a great loss to Congo and across Africa,” said the minister. “It was a man who went ahead by himself, a role model for young Congolese”.
The musician, whose real name was Jules Shungu Wembadio Pene Kikumba, rose to fame in the Congolese capital Kinshasa in 1970s with the band Zaiko Langa Langa, whose fusion of styles and African American dances inspired a generation of African musicians.
with a new band called Viva La Musica, Wemba moved to Paris in 1980 and helped popularize Congolese music beyond Africa. In 1990 he joined a tour with Peter Gabriel and appeared on his album Secret World Live.
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