Thread by @BintiStories

MBILIA BEL
The Belle of Africa’s Ball

When Nairobi was declared a city in 1950, the colonial government could not have imagined that it would be the voice of a Congolese that would carry the ‘Green City In The Sun’s’ hopes and aspirations from the 20th into the 21st century.

The name of the voice is Mbilia Bel.

By order of King George VI, Nairobi was declared a city in 1950. Amidst the pomp and pageantry of a parade mounted by the white highlanders, it was not the sound of their trumpets that would carry the spirit of Nairobi into its prosperous years.

Nor was it the beat of the drums that thundered through Nairobi’s commercial district that would hum in the background of Nairobi’s status as a commercial hub in East and Central Africa.

As the European councillors sipped their cocktails at the newly renamed ‘City Hall’, they could not have imagined that the voice of a young Zairean (then) would dominate concerts at that City Hall decades later.

The voice would carry over to the yet to be built Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) across the street.

That voice would be that of Mbilia Bel.

Mbilia Bel is probably the only musician whose song about the ‘Green City In The Sun’ carries the spirit of Nairobi in all its glorious sunshine.

To this day, that tune is still ringing all over Nairobi city's ears, during all kinds of occasions.

“ I've just caught the last bus. Tired as hell. Just from seeing a friend residing at the Nyayo Estate off Mbagathi Way and now headed east to the sprawling Nyayo Estate in Nairobi’s Embakasi. I then board the checked Embassava.

The checked red, white and blue bus of the Embassava Sacco fame.

For a moment I think of boarding Royal, Embassava’s competitor, but no, the music might
be too loud in one of those black and gold matatus.

Just because of Embarambamba’s antics I want to chenga (skip) Embassava. The two almost sound the same: Embarambamba and Embassava.

Today, I just want to listen to Mbilia Bel. No over the top vocal acrobatics. That voice that sings ever so softly and tenderly is the one I’ve been craving to hear for a few days now.

“Mbilia Bel,” I shout out my lungs so that the conductor can hear my ‘special request’. The matatus, what tourists would call taxi buses, are the main means of public transportation in Nairobi. Nowadays, the matatus have become some sort of mini-discotheques.

The songs that play on rotation eventually provide free marketing to the recording artists whose songs are played, which is a good thing were it not for the piracy.

As the driver fumbles through the MP3 stacks and flash drives, the conductor reassures me that they have many of Mbilia Bel’s numbers. The top hits are there, so no need to worry.

“Let me tell you the life story of Mbilia Bel. Yangu ni deadly kushinda ya Wikipedia. Skiza. Mbilia Bel alizaliwa huko DRC mwaka wa 1959. Jina la ubatizo lilikuwa Marie Claire Mboyo Maseka. Birthday yake ni Agosti tarehe thelathini.

Cheki. Mbilia Bel alikuwaga na Orchestra Afrisa International ya Tabu Ley aka Rochereau.”

The conductor snakes his head through the divide: “Weka ya nani… Mbilia Bel. Nini dere. NKT.”

Pepe Kalle’s most sentimental Rhumba begins to play. The driver then takes a detour from Mombasa Road where the traffic is building up. The conductor is now distracted as the phone rings.

‘Tuingie njia ya Mater, Ehe,” the conductor now motions the driver to change route.
“Mater. Mater Hospital,” he yells as he takes instructions from their ‘Inspekta’.

And just like that, my Mbilia Bel request got lost in the translation of Nairobi’s traffic jam (evasion).

I can’t help but notice Pepe Kalle’s deep voice as ‘Tika Makanisi’ begins to play.

"Tika Makanisi"

The song breaks my heart to pieces.

You see, there is a wound that hasn’t quite healed and the song’s timeline coincides with that experience.

The Jheri curl, also known as Jerry curl on Pepe and Nyboma on the CD cover kinda cracks me up because they remind me of Jeff Koinange’s curls.

(The folks on Twitter say that Jeff is the only Kenyan currently wearing that hairstyle. A bit unkind but you know how these streets are).

The Jheri curl is a very important part of the history of black people.

Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ album cover of 1982 helped to popularize the hairstyle.

The Jheri curl is a signature style of a generation, so let’s be kind good people.

I remember growing up in the 80s, Eastlands of Embakasi was mainly grassland with a few developments here and there.

Nyayo Estate was just bush. But now...
Photo: @StandardKenya

I remember a time when my parents were young and energetic.

(For those whose parents are in heaven-this part strikes a chord. It’s been a few years since you lost a parent but it still hurts so much. So much)

The guitar is talking to my soul now.

Then Pepe Kalle’s voice goes full throttle.

Today. Aaiii. What's happening today?

I can hear every note on that track. Maybe it’s because it is getting dark. In Nairobi’s darkness, there is a bit of silence.

.It’s the piano at the end that strikes that chord that pulls the strings, tugging my heart.

When Pepe Kalle starts to wail Mami.. The tears, Oh the tears.

I remember the song was playing when I went to visit Aunt Elizabeth in Iringa.

Elizabeth was my favorite Kiswahili teacher in elementary school. Madam Elizabeth was our favorite neighbor as well.

She kept us busy with stories of Chief Mkwapa and the Majimaji rebellion in pre-independent Tanzania.

She was ill when I went off to college and then she passed on. Her family couldn’t afford to rush her to hospital in time.

You see, she was like a second mother to us. Her funeral found me in a foreign land pursuing further studies.

It was winter Semester and I couldn’t even travel. It was time for exams and there was this thing with immigration.

My passport had still not been renewed in Nairobi.

The guitar plays as if it’s wailing. The guitar is still wailing. And I’m still waiting for Mbilia’s song. That song that reminds me of my parents.

It’s been a few years since Mama passed.
I’ve never really mourned like this before.

It’s taken this song to finally bring me to that place; of brokenness.

The last time a song messed me up this much, I was in church.

‘Nzambe Malamu, Nzambe Malamu’
Mungu ni Mwema, Mungu ni Mwema’
God Is Good, God Is so Good’

That’s the song we sang in Sunday School. Hearing that song many years later in these Covid times just-

Mush. They say that grief is love that cannot be expressed.

Mother’s Day is the worst because our folks never really celebrated their birthdays. Mother’s Day- These feelings are really intense on Mother’s Day. “You will pull through.” I tell myself.

I really wanted to celebrate the last Mother’s Day together with Mama but as fate would have it, I did not.

I want to text my siblings and tell them something about mother-but the tears are now flowing like a river.

Oh Mami ,Mbula
Eeh

Mami Mamii MammiiI Mammmi Monamo Mamii

Then, I notice a poster of Mbilia Bel’s countdown to Kigali Serena’s concert from a few years back. Still intact on one of the windows.

The song draws to a calm, slow, gramophone end.

You can even hear a pin drop

You hear the needle scratching. The stylus scratches the vinyl.
Scratches again

Stylus. Vinyl.Stylus.

Stylus. Vinyl.
End.

Mwisho!

Mwisho! The conductor roars. He beats the side panel of the Embassava as if it’s a living thing.

I wonder what Pepe Kalle was thinking when he wrote the song.
Then, I wonder what the conductor is thinking-beating the side of the bus like it’s a drum.

That Pepe Kalle’s daughter had missed him so much was the inspiration behind the song.

“Hiyo wimbo mazee, Pepe Kalle. Pepe alikuwa ameenda kurecord Paris na kasichana kake
kalimmiss sana tu. Yaani tu sana. Ndiyo akaaandikaga hiyo song.

Pole. Tutaweka ‘Nakei Nairobi’ next time. Twende Nairobi. Pole jo.”

I disembark-kushuka. Tears still welling up. Handkerchief. Blow.

Pole. The lady selling trinkets tells me.
Sorry.

She was sitting behind me and silently observed my demeanor.

More tears.

“Itakuwa sawa. It shall be well,” she says.
Maybe the lady’s intuition tells her it is Mother’s Day. It has something to do with Mother’s Day.

I tear up again because Mbula couldn’t make it for her brother’s funeral because she was taking her final Exams and Covid had struck in New England.

Mbula is Pepe Kalle’s daughter but there’s another Mbula in my life.

Tears are flowing and the poem is now flowing.
I

I try to text my siblings again but cannot. The screen is still hazy.

Everything’s gonna be alright.
Today has had many detours. Nothing went as planned. From Mbilia Bel to Pepe Kalle.”

Sincerely,
Matthew

(Matthew is our elementary school captain and is organizing a reunion for the class. This is the story he is working on for our reunion publication. ‘Songs In The Keys of Life’ is our not-so-original theme).

So, we carry on from where we left….

Mbilia Bel Early Years
Mbilia Bel was born Marie Claire Mboyo Moseka on August 30,1959.

At the age of seventeen Mbilia started singing as a backup vocalist for Abeti Masikini, who was christened, “The Queen of Perfumed Soukous.”

Mbilia Bel continued to expand her horizons while performing with another great musician from the Congo called Sam Mangwana.

Mbilia Bel continued to thrive as a singer but the band that catapulted her to an international appeal was the L'Orchestre Afrisa International that was led by Tabu Ley.

Tabu Ley is said to have been a genius when it came to composing music. With Tabu Ley composing the songs and Mbilia Bel’s vocals, that combination was unstoppable.

They would top the charts almost all the time they recorded together.

Their winning formula brought so much fame to Afrisa International. So much was the rise to prominence for Afrisa that it reached the point of rivalling the popularity of the preeminent band in Africa at the time, the TPOK Jazz Band led by Franco.

Mbilia Bel’s first title was released in 1981 and was titled ‘Mpeve Ya Longo’ ("Holy Spirit" in Kikongo), a moving song about spousal abuse.

In the song, she tells the story of a woman who had been abandoned by her husband and had to raise her children by herself.

The song was very popular, especially among women in Zaire (today’s Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC).

Mbilia Bel’s Music

Mbilia Bel's first album, released in 1982, was the extremely popular ‘Eswi yo wapi.’ The title song, which roughly translates to "Where did it hurt you?", was composed by both Tabu Ley and M'bilia Bel.

The song won the award for the best song of 1982 in Zaire, and M'bilia Bel won the award for best newcomer.

Other songs on the album such as Tabu Ley's "Lisanga ya Bambanda", "Kelhia", and Dino Vangu's "Quelle Mechancete" were big hits for Afrisa International.

Afrisa's popularity began to rival that of Franco's band TP.OK Jazz thanks to the arrival of the woman who was referred to as "The Cleopatra of Congolese music".

Interview With Mwanaisha Chidzuga
A few years ago, Mbilia Bel was on a tour in Kenya and granted an interview to Mwanaisha Chidzuga of K24. This is how it went down.

Interpreter: Mbilia Bel begins by saying that she always feels at home in Kenya. To her, there’s no difference whether she is in Kenya or in Congo. Both countries are home to her.

Many musicians have come and gone. Many Congolese musicians have disappeared in Kenya; what is your secret to stay this long in the business and maintain your beauty because you are still beautiful.

Mbilia Bel: It’s only God. God has given me the gift of music. All the love from the fans keeps me going.

Mwanaisha: You have sung with legends like Franco Luambo Luanzo Makiadi and the genius of a composer Tabu Ley, God rest their souls. What are the lessons you learnt from these legendary musicians?

Mbilia Bel: Discipline. A strong work ethic and listening to Tabu Ley has given me the opportunity to continue with my passion for music. One has to be patient...Don’t be in a rush to make money. The money will come.

Listen. Listen to the elders, the ones who came before you. A lot of gratitude I owe to what I learnt from Tabu Ley.
.

Until today, I recognize that I am who I am today because of Tabu Ley.

What was your relationship with the late legend Tabu Ley Ley? Were you two married? And if so, were there children in the relationship?

Mbilia Bel: Tabu Ley alikuwa ,Mdosi wake (Through interpreter)

Tabu Ley was my Boss. We were in a romantic relationship then ended up getting married. We have a daughter called Melody who resides in Europe.

Mwanaisha: Pengine wasikilizaji wangependa kusikia sauti yake.
Mbilia Bel in the sweetest of voices breaks into song
🎶Eswi yo wapi e
Eswi yo wapi e🎶

Mwanaisha: Madam Mbilia Bel, you have released many albums..
Mbilia Bel:Eighteen..

Mwanaisha: Kumi na nane. Ni ule ule tumezoea ama umebadilisha mtindo.
Mbilia Bel: I’ve been singing for 35 years. Out of the 35 years, I have released 18 albums.
I’ve sung or recorded over 400 songs in my career spanning the three and a half decades.

Mwanaisha: Out of the 400 songs, which one do you love the most?
Mbilia Bel: The song that has captured the imagination of the whole of Africa and the whole world is Ninaenda Nairobi, Nakei Nairobi

Mbilia breaks out in song.
🎶Nake Nairobi

As @yellowsundaycd reminds us of this fact:
Fun fact: In the mid 1980's, Mbilia Bel’s song ‘Nairobi’ was so popular in Kenya, Kenyan president Daniel Arap Moi lifted the banned from n all foreign music and invited her to perform in Kenya.

Bolingo

Interpreter: Mapenzi ni kama Casino, labda unapata au unakosa.
Love is like playing at the casino; it's either a hit or a miss, no in-between.

Mwanaisha: After Tabu Ley, have you been in any relationship?

Mbilia Bel: The men who are interested want me to leave music or give up my career in music.
I see this as a gift from God. If I were to make a choice between marriage and music, and I’ve been at that place; I’d choose music.

So, I chose music.

Mwanaisha: Yu mrembo sana. Siri ya urembo ni nini?

Mbilia Bel: Aah, Merci. Thank you. I go to the gym and I don’t drink alcohol.

Mwanaisha: Any advice to any young artist who might think of getting involved with drugs and alcohol so that he or she can become famous?
Mbilia Bel: ‘Afya haina bei’, meaning, one’s health cannot be quantified.
Health is priceless.

This is where our story ends today and as Mama Mbilia Bel reminded us last time she was in her beloved Nairobi:
In everything, do things in moderation.

[On that note of moderation, we end today’s story. This is the first instalment of several to come as Mbilia Bel continues to share her incredible story].