Biography
Félix Wazekwa S'Grave came into the world in Kinshasa, the Congo, during 1962. After starting out as a musician in the early 1980s alongside the group Kin-Verso, he headed to Europe in 1985 to pursue economics studies in Paris. By 1990 he had resumed ties with Congolese musicians, this time supplying lyrics, and soon earned recognition as both a dancer and a celebrated lyricist. The gruff-voiced artist first gained notice on the professional scene in the early 1990s through contributions to projects by Koffi Olomide and Papa Wemba. Those efforts included Koffi Olomide’s 1992 LP Haut de Gamme/Koweït Rive Gauche and the following year’s Noblesse Oblige, followed by work on Papa Wemba’s 1994 album Foridoles and 1995’s Pole Position. At Wemba’s suggestion, Wazekwa retained for his own use a song originally intended for the veteran singer.
His solo debut, Tetragramme, YHWH, reached the market in 1995. Two years later he issued Pauvres, Mais..., then achieved an international breakthrough across Africa with 1998’s Bonjour Monsieur, an album that highlighted his bright soukous and Congolese rumba rhythms together with his deep lyrics. The 1999 release Sponsor became his fourth album and further endeared him to listeners through its thoughtful writing. That same year he assembled his own backing ensemble, Cultur'A Pays Vie.
Wazekwa opened the new decade with Signature in 2001 and Yo nani? in 2002; the first of those sets featured the widely praised track “Mokuwa Bongo (L'Os du Cerveau).” Et Après... appeared in 2004 and Faux Mutu Moko Boye in 2005, after which 2006’s Mosapi Liboso elevated the profile of Cultur'A Pays Vie. By the time Que Demande le Peuple arrived in 2008, the project stood as his tenth long-player. La Chèvre de Monsieur followed shortly thereafter, and Mémoire ya Nzambe completed a trilogy of releases within three years when it surfaced in 2010. Adamu na Eva came out in 2013 and I Love You in 2015. Over the ensuing decade he produced four additional albums before issuing his first book, Les Petits Bonbons de la Sagesse, which Bergame published in January 2018. In 2020 he returned with his fifteenth studio album, Article 23.
His solo debut, Tetragramme, YHWH, reached the market in 1995. Two years later he issued Pauvres, Mais..., then achieved an international breakthrough across Africa with 1998’s Bonjour Monsieur, an album that highlighted his bright soukous and Congolese rumba rhythms together with his deep lyrics. The 1999 release Sponsor became his fourth album and further endeared him to listeners through its thoughtful writing. That same year he assembled his own backing ensemble, Cultur'A Pays Vie.
Wazekwa opened the new decade with Signature in 2001 and Yo nani? in 2002; the first of those sets featured the widely praised track “Mokuwa Bongo (L'Os du Cerveau).” Et Après... appeared in 2004 and Faux Mutu Moko Boye in 2005, after which 2006’s Mosapi Liboso elevated the profile of Cultur'A Pays Vie. By the time Que Demande le Peuple arrived in 2008, the project stood as his tenth long-player. La Chèvre de Monsieur followed shortly thereafter, and Mémoire ya Nzambe completed a trilogy of releases within three years when it surfaced in 2010. Adamu na Eva came out in 2013 and I Love You in 2015. Over the ensuing decade he produced four additional albums before issuing his first book, Les Petits Bonbons de la Sagesse, which Bergame published in January 2018. In 2020 he returned with his fifteenth studio album, Article 23.
Albums
