Biography
With a worldly outlook and genre-blending approach, the Brussels-based Congolese singer/songwriter Lous and the Yakuza layers rapid-fire rap verses alongside velvety melodies atop entrancing beats rooted in trap. By merging influences from multiple continents and cultural lineages, she reaches audiences via the lens of a young Black woman navigating life in Europe. Her breakthrough arrived in 2019 via the single “Dilemme,” drawn from her first full-length album, Gore, issued the following year. Subsequent releases included the assertive “Kisé,” featured on the 2022 LP Iota.
Born Marie-Pierra Kakoma in Lubumbashi, she absorbed the classical, traditional Congolese, and Rwandan sounds cherished by her physician parents. These foundations later intertwined with her affinity for artists such as Britney Spears and James Blake. At age five she accompanied her family when they left the Congo for Belgium; several years afterward they relocated to Rwanda. By her mid-teens, however, she sought a return to Belgium, settling in Namur at fifteen. She first concentrated on philosophy studies before committing to music, undeterred by her parents’ concerns. During this period she endured stretches of instability, sometimes living outdoors and occasionally using recording studios as shelter. Within a few years she finished several EPs, most often in French yet occasionally incorporating her native Kinyarwanda and Kiswahili.
Her material drew interest from Sony, which signed her in 2019. Merging R&B, trap, and chanson française elements, she enlisted producer Ponko for the driving “Dilemme,” her introductory single, which surfaced that September and achieved worldwide success. She next issued “Tout Est Gore,” helmed by El Guincho (Rosalía). Both songs appeared on her major-label debut, Gore (Columbia/Sony), released in October 2020. The following year brought the single “Amigo” featuring Joey Bada$$, while the euphoric “Kisé” anchored the full-length Iota that arrived in 2022. Later the same year she collaborated with Adekunle Gold on “Handle Me.”
Born Marie-Pierra Kakoma in Lubumbashi, she absorbed the classical, traditional Congolese, and Rwandan sounds cherished by her physician parents. These foundations later intertwined with her affinity for artists such as Britney Spears and James Blake. At age five she accompanied her family when they left the Congo for Belgium; several years afterward they relocated to Rwanda. By her mid-teens, however, she sought a return to Belgium, settling in Namur at fifteen. She first concentrated on philosophy studies before committing to music, undeterred by her parents’ concerns. During this period she endured stretches of instability, sometimes living outdoors and occasionally using recording studios as shelter. Within a few years she finished several EPs, most often in French yet occasionally incorporating her native Kinyarwanda and Kiswahili.
Her material drew interest from Sony, which signed her in 2019. Merging R&B, trap, and chanson française elements, she enlisted producer Ponko for the driving “Dilemme,” her introductory single, which surfaced that September and achieved worldwide success. She next issued “Tout Est Gore,” helmed by El Guincho (Rosalía). Both songs appeared on her major-label debut, Gore (Columbia/Sony), released in October 2020. The following year brought the single “Amigo” featuring Joey Bada$$, while the euphoric “Kisé” anchored the full-length Iota that arrived in 2022. Later the same year she collaborated with Adekunle Gold on “Handle Me.”
Albums
Singles
