M’bilia Bel dates Malawi

Those who were old enough to sing in the early 1980s will remember songs such as Eswi yo Wapi (Where Did It Hurt you?) and Shauri Yako sang by M’bilia Bel also known as the queen of Congolese rumba and  soukous.

The good news is that the celebrated Congolese singer is set to tour Malawi this summer.  Chez Ntemba International Club will bring the singer during her tour of Zambia and South Africa in August, said Chez Ntemba International Malawi’s Entertainment Director DJ Bwanamkubwa.

He explained in an interview:  “The tour is a great opportunity for Malawi’s music fans as well as artists. M’bilia Bel’s talent has caught up with time and she is doing a new kind of rumba music, as such the show is for all people regardless of age.”

Initially, the club planned to bring the artist to coincide with the African Union Summit which Malawi was scheduled to host next month but has since been cancelled.

“We wanted to give Malawians and international guests a special African treat during the meeting. Although it has been cancelled, we are going ahead with our plans of bringing M’bilia Bel to Malawi this time in August. We are currently working on the dates,” said Bwanamkubwa.

After arriving in Malawi, M’bilia Bel will treat her fans to a dinner at the Capital Hotel before proceeding to Blantyre for a gig at the  refurbished Chez Ntemba.

According to Bwanamkubwa, she will wrap her show with another performance at the Chez Lilongwe Club.

This will be the second international artist to perform at Chez clubs in Malawi, after South Africa’s DJ Professor of the Jezebel fame came last month in a trip that marked the official reopening of the newly refurbished joints.

M’bilia Bel, who became famous in the 80s, is still hot with her limpid soprano and has recently released an album called The Queen.

In Malawi, one of her famous songs ever is Shauri Yako, a track she did in the 1980s. With a combination of beauty, an angelic soprano voice, and tremendous agility on stage, M’bilia Bel stole the hearts of music fans all over the continent.

Born 1959, M’bilia Bel rose to fame after being discovered by Tabu Ley Rochereau of the revitalised Orchestre Afrisa International. She came out of the relationship with a child.