[1][2][3] Emerging in the mid-20th century in the urban centers of Brazzaville and Léopoldville (now Kinshasa) during the colonial era, the genre's roots can be traced to the Bakongo partner dance music known as maringa, which was traditionally practiced within the former Kingdom of Loango, encompassing regions of contemporary Republic of the Congo, southern Gabon, and Cabinda Province of Angola.

[10][11] The 1960s and 1970s saw the emergence of soukous, an urban dance music style that emanated from Congolese rumba, imbuing it with lively rhythms, intricate high-pitched guitar melodies, and large brass and polyrhythmic percussion sections.

[18][4] The style has gained widespread popularity in Africa, reaching countries like Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Zambia, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Nigeria, Ghana, South Sudan, Senegal, Burundi, Malawi, and Namibia.

[23] The contemporary Congolese rumba instrumental makeup primarily includes guitars, mandolins, banjos, drums, saxophones, clarinets, trumpets, maracas, pianos, shakers, double bells (ekonga), likembe, accordion, and racketts.

[21] A paradigmatic Congolese rumba song usually begins with a slow section featuring vocals, followed by an instrumental interlude called the sébène, characterized by rapid guitar articulations and an accelerated tempo.

[5] Maringa was a Bakongo dance similar to West African highlife and historically practiced within the former Kingdom of Loango, covering areas in the present-day Republic of the Congo, southern Gabon, and Cabinda Province of Angola.

[5] Ethnomusicology professor Kazadi wa Mukuna of Kent State University explains that many recording studio proprietors at the time sought to reinterpret the term maringa by infusing it with the new "rumba" rhythm while retaining its original name.

[24] Emmanuel Okamba, a Congolese musicologist, posits that these West African laborers introduced the highlife rhythm, played on a large drum, which delineated the tempo of the emerging musical genre.

[43][44][45][46][47] According to British musicologist Gary Stewart's Rumba on the River: A History of the Popular Music of the Two Congos, some scholars even trace sebene's origins further back to transitional genres in Brazzaville, such as the kebo.

[24][48][49] Accompanied by musicians Raymond Nguema, Joseph Botokoua, and Bernardin Yoka, Bonne Espérance performed their music at venues such as Chez Mamadou Moro and the Cercle Culturel Catholique de Poto-Poto in Brazzaville.

[24] In the early 1940s, the music of Cuban son groups, such as Sexteto Habanero, Trio Matamoros, and Los Guaracheros de Oriente, was played on Radio Congo Belge in Léopoldville, quickly gaining nationwide popularity.

[61] The Odéon Kinois Orchestra, led by Antoine Kasongo, played a pivotal role in the development of modern Congolese rumba at the end of the 1940s, particularly in pioneering the sébène instrumental section, which was performed by guitarist Zacharie Elenga during his brief stint in the group before joining Opika.

[64] Jeronimidis also signed Camille Feruzi and several singer-guitarists, including Manoka De Saio, Adou Elenga, Léon Bukasa, Manuel D'Oliveira, and Georges Edouard, who formed the ensemble San Salvador.

[64] A Belgian guitarist named Bill Alexandre, who had honed his craft in the jazz clubs of Brussels during the Nazi occupation and performed alongside luminaries such as Django Reinhardt, eventually settled in Léopoldville and established CEFA (Compagnie d'Énregistrements Folkloriques Africains).

[40][41] This style, often characterized by a slower tempo and minimal distinctions between orchestras, included works like Antoine Moundanda's "Paul Kamba Atiki Biso" (1950) and "Mabele Ya Paulo" (1953), released under Ngoma.

[77] Joseph Athanase Tshamala Kabasele, commonly known as Le Grand Kallé, became the first Congolese musician to establish his own music label, under the name Surboum African Jazz, with financial backing from Léopoldville-based Congolese distribution and publishing company ECODIS (Edition Congolaise du Disque), the Congo-Decca group (a subsidiary of Decca West Africa Limited, owned by Decca Records), and the Belgian record company FONIOR, based in Brussels.

Consequently, numerous music publishing houses, managed either by musicians or private individuals, proliferated in the early 1960s, including Epanza Makita, Editions Populaires, Eve, La Musette, ISA, Vita, Londende, Macquis, Parions, Mamaky, Boboto, Super Contact, and many more.

[72] Classics like "Afrika Mokili Mobimba" made them one of Africa's most prominent bands, with its "loopy-riffing guitars, peculiar drum and bass grooves that lock in while twisting the beat, and horn parts that tell little melodic stories of their own.

[96][97][98][95] Over the years, the ensemble spun off several musicians, including Héritier Watanabe, Fabregas Le Métis Noir, Robinio Mundibu, Ferré Gola, Tutu Callugi, Alain Mpela, Adolphe Dominguez, Marie Paul Kambulu, and Ricoco Bulambemba.

[116][82] In July–August 1969, Les Bantous de la Capitale and the Bamboula Orchestra were among the musicians participating in the Premier Festival Culturel Panafricain d'Alger, a celebration of African identity and culture to facilitate interaction between liberation movements and promoting the newly independent Algeria as a continental leader.

[122] Other Zairean artists, such as Tabu Ley Rochereau, M'bilia Bel, Kanda Bongo Man, Pépé Kallé, Syran Mbenza, Franklin Boukaka, Bozi Boziana, Evoloko Jocker, Rigo Star, Josky Kiambukuta, Diblo Dibala, Jolie Detta, Dindo Yogo, Gaby Lita Bembo, and Koffi Olomide garnered substantial followings in the United States, Europe, and across Africa.

[152] Meanwhile, Les Bantous de la Capitale became the favored Congolese rumba orchestra of Gabonese president Omar Bongo, receiving an official invitation to perform during the 20th-anniversary celebrations of Renovation Day in Libreville, held in March 1988.

Martha Badibala, Tekele Mokango, Anne Ako, Ester Sudila, Léonine Mbongo, Joséphine Sambeya, Jeanne Ninin, and Caroline Mpia became influential in sculpting the genre during this transformative epoch.

Cameroonian singer Marcelle Ebibi, for instance, introduced electric guitar rhythms to the genre with her opus "Mama é", chaperoned by her fiancé Guy Léon Fylla and Belgian guitarist Bill Alexandre.

[182] Ensembles such as Les Makoma played a pivotal role in establishing the presence of female gospel artists in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including Deborah Lukalu, Sandra Mbuyi, and Dena Mwana.

The music gained traction, especially in economically underprivileged urban areas, predominantly inhabited by Afro-Colombian communities, where it was incorporated into sound systems at parties across cities such as Cartagena, Barranquilla, and Palenque de San Basilio.

[196] The emergence of champeta involved replicating musical arrangements by Congolese artists like Nicolas Kasanda wa Mikalay, Tabu Ley Rochereau, M'bilia Bel, Syran Mbenza, Lokassa Ya M'Bongo, Pépé Kallé, Rémy Sahlomon, and Kanda Bongo Man.

[199] During the Super Bowl LIV halftime show on 2 February 2020, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, Shakira danced to the song "Icha" by Syran Mbenza, accompanied by several dancers.

[199] Prominent artists include Youssoupha, Maître Gims, Dadju, Niska, Singuila, Damso, KeBlack, Naza, Zola, Kalash Criminel, Ninho, Kaysha, Franglish, Gradur, Shay, Bramsito, Baloji, Tiakola, and Ya Levis Dalwear—all descendants of Congolese musical lineage.

[227] According to ethnomusicology professor Alex Perullo of Bryant University, Mobutu's Zairianization movement precipitated an upsurge in the popularity of Congolese rumba in Tanzania and Kenya,[228] and pirated albums and cassettes from Kinshasa made their way to local markets in East Africa.