Madilu System
The 'King of Rumba', singer and composer of the legendary TP OK Jazz band of the late Franco, dies in Kinshasa on 11 August 2007.
Congolese superstar Madilu System, born Jean De Dieu Bilau, has died in a Kinshasa hospital on 11 August 2007, aged 57. He had suffered from diabetes and a cardiovascular disease.
The outpouring of grief for Madilu System in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital, as well as the rest of the country and worldwide, has been truly overwhelming. Congolese radio has dedicated a huge part of their airtime to Madilu's music. The streets of Kinshasa have been packed with people paying their final respect to the artist who became affectionately known as 'Congo's King Of Rumba' and was also regarded as one of Congo's greatest composer. During his funeral procession thousands of people walked from walk from Kinshasa's main stadium to the cemetery, with many musicians singing "since you are gone, we do not live, we do not eat".
After many years of singing with groups such as Bakuba Mayopi, Madilu joined the renowned TP (= Le Tout Puissant) OK Jazz band in the early 1980s. TP OK Jazz was the band of legendary Franco. Most of his fans will fondly remember his duets with the great Franco which featured in many memorable songs.
Shortly after Franco's death in 1989 Madilu left the band to start a solo career and released a number of successful albums, his latest one, 'La Bonne Humeur' only having been out for a couple of weeks. Madilu lived in Paris for a while where he recorded with artists like Nyboma Mwandido, Lokasa ya Mbongo, Dally Kimoko and Nguma Lokito, but had relocated to Kinshasa some time ago.
Tributes have also come in from music industry figures. Lubangi Muniania, President of Tabilulu Productions, says: "Madilu System was to many in Africa what Luther Vandross was to Americans. It is a great loss for African music as a whole. He has given us so many melodies to dance to and hits after to cheer up our lives."
"Congo has bred singers with more impressive range, more force or sweeter tone than Madilu," Ken Braun of Stern's Music believes, "but very few who sang with his expressiveness, his ability to vivify character with his voice. It was this quality that Franco appreciated so well. He and Madilu shared the lead vocals on many of Franco’s story-songs, Franco singing the narrative and Madilu assuming the role of the protagonist."
Leave your thoughts on Madilu System here .