[11] The outflow of Kru merchants and sailors from Liberia to Brazzaville during the mid-19th century introduced distinctive guitar-playing techniques that ultimately influenced the use of the accordion to emulate local "likembe" (thumb piano, best known worldwide as a mbira) rhythms.

[11] Initially, maringa bands featured the likembe for melody, a metal rod-struck bottle for rhythm, and a small skin-covered frame drum called patenge for counter-rhythms.

[11] The Cuban son groups like Sexteto Habanero, Trio Matamoros, and Los Guaracheros de Oriente were broadcast on Radio Congo Belge, gaining popularity in the country.

[15][11][16] Ethnomusicology Professor Kazadi wa Mukuna of Kent State University explicates that the term "rumba" persisted in the Congos due to recording industry interests.

[19][20] Etymologically, the term soukous, derived from the French verb secouer, denoting "to shake," initially described a person who moved jerkily but evolved into a dance style synonymous with vitality and cadence.

Artists began incorporating faster rhythms, and prominent guitar improvisation, often characterized by high-pitched, fast-paced lines imbued with more heightened African motif.

[22][2][23][24] Conversely, British writer Gary Stewart suggests that soukous evolved into both a music genre and dance style in Brazzaville, stemming from the establishment of the Super Band in 1964 by up-and-coming guitarist Jacques Kimbembe.

[26][27] The ensemble, later rebranded as Sinza, meaning "root stock," introduced soukous to Brazzaville's nightlife in 1966, supplanting the traditional boucher style of Les Bantous de la Capitale.

[26] Stewart further notes that Orchestre Sinza innovated soukous in 1968 with a new wrinkle called mossaka, and soon thereafter, Nico Kasanda introduced the kiri-kiri, which was based in part on the "jerk" from Western rock.

[8] In the late 1960s and early 1970s, soukous became a predominant popular African dance style across Africa and into the continent's diaspora in Belgium, France, the UK, and the United States.

[28][29] During this period, a surge of Zairean musicians moved to Belgium and France, primarily driven by the hegemony of the Mobutu Sese Seko regime, which propagated propaganda songs as part of the Authenticité campaign to foster a sense of national identity and pride through ideological slogans of the one-party state, the Movement Populaire de la Révolution (MPR).

[33][31][34] As a result, the globalization of Congolese urban music expanded, leading to a massive exodus of musicians to African and European countries, most notably Belgium and France.

[15][36][28] Against this backdrop, Tabu Ley Rochereau made history as the first African artist invited to perform at Paris's Olympia Hall in December 1970, where he attracted few connoisseurs and set a precedent for subsequent Zairean musicians.

[8] The African All Stars' breakout hit, "Suzana Coulibaly," released on 31 December 1979, featured "simple, repetitive rhythms" at a faster tempo than traditional Congolese rumba.

[8] Mangwana's exclamation "soukous sophistiqué" as Lokassa Ya M'Bongo and Rigo Star crafted a "rock-solid" sebene solidified the record's direction, initiating an independent musical movement targeting the international market.

[44][45][24][46] As sociopolitical turmoil in Zaire deteriorated in the 1970s, a great number of musicians ventured to Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, where orchestras sustained themselves through record sales and consistent stage performances.

[52][53] The utilization of the cavacha rhythm, typically played on the snare drum or high-hat, became emblematic of the Zairean sound in Nairobi and was frequently adopted by regional bands.

[59][60] Soukous catalyzed the emergence of a distinct genre of guitar-based Igbo highlife music, exemplified by musicians like Oliver De Coque, the Oriental Brothers International, and their various imitators and followers.

[59] This structural paradigm became emblematic of Igbo guitar highlife recordings epitomized by the music style of Oliver De Coque and Oriental Brothers International.

[65][66] In the third chapter of the documentary Pasos de la Cumbia, Lucas Silva, a DJ and cultural producer specializing in African music, recounts how Mobutu Sese Seko purchased a plane in Colombia.

[67][68] When it required maintenance, a Colombian mechanic traveled to Zaire, returning with a collection of 45 rpm records, including the iconic El Mambote by l'Orchestre Veve, which became a hit.

[67] Local musicians began replicating the arrangements of 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.

[67] During the Super Bowl LIV halftime show on 2 February 2020, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, Shakira danced to Syran Mbenza's "Icha", a song colloquially referred to as "El Sebastián" in Colombia, which spawned the #ChampetaChallenge on social media platforms worldwide.

[28] Meanwhile, Dieudonné Kabongo, Dizzy Mandjeku, and Ntesa Dalienst rose to prominence due to the bankruptcy of Belgian record label Fonior!, which prompted many Zairean artists like Lita Bembo and Matima to seek reputable distribution entities in Belgium, while others found solace in performing in religious choirs, which frequently toured Holland.

The compilation included music from Mali and Cameroon alongside "Madeleina," a track from Pablo 'Porthos' Lubadika's 1981 album Ma Coco, which gained significant attention in Europe.

Notable critics like Nyboma argued that the music had become commercialized and lacked emotional depth, calling for a return to the fundamentals of "beautiful melodies and highly tuned voices.

[8] Swede-Swede, an ensemble exclusively employing traditional instruments, operates out of Belgium, while Les Malo, primarily comprising former instructors from the National Institute of Arts in Kinshasa, specializes in Afro-jazz in Lyon.

[92][90][91] However, by the early 2000s, ndombolo faced scrutiny, with accusations of obscenity leading to attempts to prohibit it from state media in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, Senegal, Mali, and Kenya.