Papa Wemba was one of the very first musicians to join the influential Soukous band, Zaiko Langa Langa when it was created on December 24, 1969 in Kinshasa (Capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo) along with such well known Congolese musicians as Nyoka Longo Jossart, Manuaku Pepe Felly, Evoloko Lay Lay, Teddy Sukamu, Zamuangana Enock, Mavuela Simeon, and others.
In a Congolese musical world dominated at the time by Franco Luambo and his remarkable band TPOK Jazz, Tabu Ley Rochereau's Afrisa, and by then-new musical groups like Les Grands Maquisards, Le Trio Madjesi, and even younger bands like Bella-Bella, Thu Zaina and Empire Bakuba, the young and talented Papa Wemba (then known as Jules Presley Shungu Wembadio), was one of the driving forces that by 1973 made Zaiko Langa Langa one of the most-performing dominant Congolese groups, featuring such popular numbers as "Chouchouna" (Papa Wemba), "Eluzam" and " Mbeya Mbeya" (Evoloko Lay Lay), "BP ya Munu" (Efonge Gina) and "Zania" (Mavuela Somo).
In December 1974, at the pinnacle of their fame (and just a month after the Rumble in the Jungle between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in Kinshasa), Shungu Wembadio (Papa Wemba), along with Evoloko Lay Lay, Mavuela Somo and Bozi Boziana (who'd joined Zaiko Langa Langa a year earlier), left Zaiko Langa Langa to establish their own musical ensemble Isifi Lokole, ISIFI being an acronym for "Institut de Savoir Ideologique pour la Formation des Idoles." In July 1975, Shungu Wembadio officially adopted the soon-to-be-well-known worldwide artist name Papa Wemba, the addition of "Papa" (father) an allusion to what were in fact rather awesome family responsiblities as the first son in a family where both father and mother (Wemba's parents) had been deceased since the 1960s.
The "feux d'artifice" (fireworks) that was Isifi Lokole would only last a year, with the single "Amazone" (Papa Wemba) as its biggest commercial "hit" record. In November 1975, Papa Wemba, Mavuela Somo and Bozi Boziana abandoned Evoloko Lay Lay and Isifi Lokole to create the group Yoka Lokole (also known as The Kinshasha All-Stars, or Lokole Isifi, or simply Isifi), along with Mbuta Mashakado, another Zaiko Langa Langa 'transfusion.' Yoka Lokole enjoyed slightly less popular success than the original Isifi Lokole, but for a time still managed to remain at the top the African pop music wave with hit songs like "Matembele Bangui", "Lisuma ya Zazu" (Papa Wemba), "Mavuela Sala Keba", and "Bana Kin" (Mavuela Somo).
Like Isifi Lokole, the electronic-instrument driven Yoka Lokole (or The Kinshasha All-Stars) would not last much longer than a year, given the merger of so many big-name talents in the band's lineup. After a year of modest success, controversies within Yoka Lokole over money and prestige (complicated by Wemba's arrest and brief incarceration in Kinshasa Central prison in December 1976 for the 'crime' of being suspected of having had physical intimacy with an influential army general's daughter) would lead Papa Wemba, then feeling diminished by peers and neglected by the public, to form his own group Viva la Musica in February 1977.
At his home in the Matonge neighborhood of Kinshasa, Papa Wemba structured Viva la Musica around young talented artists like singers Kisangani Esperant, Jadot le Cambodgien, Pepe Bipoli and Petit Aziza, guitarists Rigo Star, Syriana, and Bongo Wende. The group had nearly instantaneous success, with hit songs like "Mere Superieure," "Mabele Mokonzi," "Bokulaka," "Princesse ya Sinza," and others.
During the height of his success in 1977, Papa Wemba's family home, which had become a popular, some even said hallowed/special place for Matonge youths to gather "à la mode" (i.e., to be cool) was named the "Village Molokai," and Wemba assumed the exalted moniker "Chef Coutumier" (Chief) of the Village of Molokai. In those days people referred to Papa Wemba as the "chief from the heartland (village)" to differentiate him from Kinshasa-born musical bigshots Mavuela Somo and Mashakado. However years later Mavuela would say that their difficulties only simply amounted to trivial foolishness over money, ambition and fame between some very-young people (that at the time they all were).
Since 1977, Viva la Musica has seen both the 'defections' of musicians every two or three years and the entrée and emergence of other new talents. King Kester Emeneya (1977-1982), Koffi Olomide (1978-1979), Djuna Djanana (1978-1981), Dindo Yogo (1979-1981), Maray-Maray (1980-1984), Lidjo Kwempa (1982-2001), Reddy Amissi (1982-2001), Stino Mubi (1983-2001) are among the currently well-known Congolese musicians who have served at one time or another with Viva la Musica. An old Kinshasa anecdote says that a college student then-named Antoine Agbepa Koffi was such an impressive songwriter that one day in 1977 Papa Wemba exhorted, "Ooh! l'homme idee" (Oh! the idea-man!) thereby on-the-spot renaming the impressive young singer-songwriter Koffi 'Olomide'--and the name stuck!
After the wave of African emigration to Europe in the 1990s, Wemba maintained one group in Kinshasa (called at times "Nouvelle Ecriture," "Nouvel Ecrita," and now again "Viva la Musica") and another one in Paris ("Nouvelle Generation," "La Cour des Grands," and now "Viva Tendance"). He has also consistently maintained a very high profile in World Music with such great hits as "L'Esclave" (1986), "Le Voyageur, Maria Valencia" (1992), "Foridoles, Dixieme Commandement" (1994), "Emotion" (1995), "Pole Position" (1996), "Fula Ngenge" (1999), "Bakala dia Kuba" (2001), and "Somo Trop" (2003). Many would assign Wemba the status of African-music "living legend," as few others in history could claim (Franco Luambo, Tabu Ley Rochereau, and Miriam Makeba certainly among them).
Papa Wemba is also known as an actor. In 1987, he played the male lead role in the successful Zairean (Congolese) film La Vie est Belle by Belgian director Benoit Lami and Congolese producer-director Ngangura Mweze.
Pourquoi Tu n'es pas là
Papa Wemba Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mamé (ma)
Mamé mamé (mama)
Mamé (ma) oka
To lapaki ndayi oh Clément Stone toko boyana té
Ngá na yó oh
Tokomaka na buku'a Nzambé
Lelo tokomi poto é y'obongoli motéma na yo eh
Otiki ngá
O sambwisi ngá
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là)
Oyo soni na misu ya ba boti'o (et pourtant tu m'a promis)
To lobaki toko boyana té (de ne jamais se quitté)
Ngá na yó (jusqu'à la fin de nos vies)
Yango eloko nini oh ba layisi'o
Po yo obosana nga bo nganza na yó eh
Yango eloko nini oh ba sali'o
Po yo obosana bo motô na yo nionso eh
Pe yo otika nga somo eh
Nako loba nini na ba ninga ah
Nako loba nini naba botio
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là)
(Et pourtant tu m'a promis)
(De ne jamais se quitté) zonga é-e-e-h
(Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies)
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là)
(Et pourtant tu m'a promis) olobaki toko boyana té oh
(De ne jamais se quitté) na suki e-e-eh
(Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies) na sambwe é-e-eh
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là) é-eh mawa
(Et pourtant tu m'a promis) sé moko nguena mabé
(De ne jamais se quitté) soucis mako yebisa yo
(Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies) olobaka toko tikana té oh
Tu m'a promis eh
Maintenant t'es où?
Pourquoi tu n'est pas là (tu n'est pas là)
Ngaï mawa oh (et pourtant tu n'est pas là)
Olobaka toko boyana té
Ngá na yó (pourquoi tu n'est pas là) nga na yó
Nga na yó (et pourtant tu m'a promis)
Olobaka toko tikana té oh
De ne jamais se quitté
Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies
Mongongo ekawuki eh
Mboka mobimba eboyi nga eh
Nga e-eh-eh-eh-eh-eh oh
Pourquoi tu n'est pas là
Et pourtant tu m'a promis
De ne jamais se quitté
Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies
The song Pourquoi Tu n'es pas là by Papa Wemba (translated as "Why Aren't You Here?") is a beautiful and poignant song about the frustrations of waiting for a loved one who is never there. The song's opening lines repeat "mamé mamé" which is a colloquial word meaning "now" in Lingala, the language of the song. The lyrics then go on to describe being stood up by a lover who has failed to keep a promise to never leave. The repeated lines of "Pourquoi tu n'es pas là" (Why aren't you here?) punctuate the sense of loss and yearning for a lover who has left.
The opening lines of the second verse are a reference to Clément Stone, a famous American salesperson and author known for motivational books. Papa Wemba is typically known to use metaphors in his music, and so the name Stone may suggest a morally strong person who is reliable and trustworthy. The remaining lines speak to the frustrations and confusion that come with a lover's absence, with Papa Wemba wondering why his lover would leave him.
The third and final verse continues with the theme of waiting and yearning for a lover to return. The lines "soucis mako yebisa yo" mean "my worries are killing me." Papa Wemba's vocals on this section are particularly emotive, conveying the sense of desperation and longing that comes when someone you love is not there. Overall, Pourquoi Tu n'es pas là is a beautiful song that speaks to universal emotions of love and loss, and is a testament to Papa Wemba's enduring legacy as one of Africa's greatest musicians.
Line by Line Meaning
Mamé mamé (ma)
Mother, mother
Mamé (ma)
Mother
Mamé mamé (mama)
Mother, mother
Mamé (ma) oka
Mother, okay
To lapaki ndayi oh Clément Stone toko boyana té
You left me, oh Clément Stone, we promised never to part
Ngá na yó oh
I'm alone now
Tokomaka na buku'a Nzambé
We made this promise to God
Toko tikana té kino liwa
We wouldn't let anything separate us
Lelo tokomi poto é y'obongoli motéma na yo eh
Now my heart is yearning for you
Otiki ngá
You left me
O sambwisi ngá
You abandoned me
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là)
(Why aren't you here)
Oyo soni na misu ya ba boti'o (et pourtant tu m'a promis)
This is what saddens me, you promised me
To lobaki toko boyana té (de ne jamais se quitté)
We swore never to leave each other
Ngá na yó (jusqu'à la fin de nos vies)
Now I'm alone, until the end of our lives
Yango eloko nini oh ba layisi'o
What went wrong?
Po yo obosana nga bo nganza na yó eh
Why did you leave me in this pain?
Yango eloko nini oh ba sali'o
What happened?
Po yo obosana bo motô na yo nionso eh
Why did you take my heart with you?
Pe yo otika nga somo eh
Can you still hear me?
Nako loba nini na ba ninga ah
What do I need to do to be with you?
Nako loba nini naba botio
What should I do to make you remember our promise?
Zonga é-e-e-h
Come back
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là)
(Why aren't you here)
(Et pourtant tu m'a promis) olobaki toko boyana té oh
(And yet you promised me) we swore never to part
(De ne jamais se quitté) na suki e-e-eh
(Never to leave each other) with love
(Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies) na sambwe é-e-eh
(Until the end of our lives) we'll be together
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là) é-eh mawa
(Why aren't you here) it hurts
(Et pourtant tu m'a promis) sé moko nguena mabé
(And yet you promised me) it was a sincere vow
(De ne jamais se quitté) soucis mako yebisa yo
(Never to leave each other) my worries tell you
(Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies) olobaka toko tikana té oh
(Until the end of our lives) we promised never to separate
Tu m'a promis eh
You promised me
Maintenant t'es où?
Where are you now?
(Pourquoi tu n'est pas là) tu n'est pas là
(Why aren't you here) you're not here
Ngaï mawa oh (et pourtant tu n'est pas là)
I am sad (and yet you're not here)
Olobaka toko boyana té
We promised never to part
Ngá na yó (pourquoi tu n'est pas là) nga na yó
Now I'm alone (why aren't you here), I'm alone
Nga na yó (et pourtant tu m'a promis)
I'm alone (and yet you promised me)
Olobaka toko tikana té oh
We promised never to separate
De ne jamais se quitté
Never to leave each other
Jusqu'à la fin de nos vies
Until the end of our lives
Mongongo ekawuki eh
The sky is crying
Mboka mobimba eboyi nga eh
My dear country is calling me
Nga e-eh-eh-eh-eh-eh oh
I'm here, oh
Writer(s): Kanza Lokua, Wenbadio Pene Shungu
Contributed by Aaliyah T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Fredrick muchaili
on Chacun pour soi
Am in love with this song.. thanks for the detailed explanation of the lyrics guys
Kevin Mitten
on Sala Keba (Be Careful)
The lyrics are spanish. Probably not correct.