Embowassa gives us an alternative view of the music scene in Zaïre. Rather than follow the Rumba-Soukous trends Embowassa chose to make an original music based on their folk traditions. The featured song “Mpese – (Cockroach)” was a chance recording that ended up leading off their first album “Tuta Weza.” Embowassa said that the song was telling someone, “You have saved a cockroach from the hens. Now it laughs at you.” At times no good deeds go unpunished!
This beautiful recording comes to us through Robert Falk, a Belgian musician and record producer. He met Embowassa in his first trip to the continent of Africa. Since then he has recorded musicians in Senegal and Zambia in addition to his own music deeply influenced by his contact with Africans and African music.
