Fally Ipupa brings down the house- Zenith,Paris

Simply put Dicaprio has done it again! First it was the launch of his debut album 'Droit chemin' which was set in Olympia in France. On 2nd of January 2010 Fally Ipupa perfomed at what could be termed as, the biggest concert from an African musician this year. His new Album Arsenal de belle melodies was launched in Zenith,Paris.

Fally arrived in Paris with no less than a 24 members of his band. This show continues to receive accolades from fans and critics alike.

The Zenith concert was executed only after Fally perfomed a number of shows in the Democratic republic of Congo and other parts of Africa namely Tanzania,Cameroun, Congo Brazaville and Gabon. His perfomances featured Krys(France) and Mokobe(Cameroun). Fally made a brief but significant appearance at the MTV MAMA awards in Kenya. In retrospect, Dicaprio seems to sow his musical seeds deep in Africa before venturing in a foreign.





Hale Prof is a writer from Congo who told CFS during an interview, "I talked to a couple guys who flew live and direct from The City of Angles, Los Angeles to attend the show and apparantly Fally Ipupa, as expected, sold-out Zenith to the max. They said the music and the vibe was one of a lifetime." He adds.




Critics have concentrated on discrediting the collaboration between Fally and American artists. Olivia Longott formerly of G-unit has not been spared from this dialect. Olivia, sang in lingala, to the amazement of twenty thousand music lovers at the auditorium, who sang in unison .Her distinct yet subtle voice filled the air singing the chorus to Chaise Electrique Mama na ngai ye napeli moto (dearest one you give me the fire) something close to that.


Fally Ipupa seems to give his critics sleepless nights. During this concert he was awarded a gold record for his new album Arsenal de belles melodies. Fally has earned his stripes as an African musician whose innovation stands out. He blends Congolese Rhumba with R&B, Hiphop, Salsa and fast paced Makosa music from Cameroun. Dicaprio raises the bar higher, since he only perfoms with a live band. This proves to be a daunting task for leading R&B musicians from the US. Who are used to perfoming using playbacks.

Fally's successes have not gone well with a conservative line of Congolese musicians and fans. PC Mpondolo a congolese rhumba fan on an interview with CFS said "Unless Fally Ipupa knows something Franco does not know, his days are numbered. The reason why this music is popular, is because it is African and not American. Fally is not the first person to try and be the Black American of Africa. There have been others mostly in South Africa."

"Fally plays pure rhumba music 80% of the time, but the discussion always seems to center about the other 20%, and then he is given a hard time by “hardliners” says Lawal a contributor of Vibed'Afrique Online magazine.

Despite the tag of war as to whether Fally plays Congelese music or not. Dicaprio turned Zenith auditorium inside out. He featured Olivia and Krys amongst other instrumentalists like Ramazani(Leading congolese Rythm guitarist) just to mention but a few.

Fally told CFS on an interview during the MTV MAMA awards, 'Congolese people love my music but not only them but also music lovers worldwide. My music is a new image, a new style.' Said Fally.

It is undeniable that Fally's unique style draws a distinct line between him and all the other Congolese artists.