Youlou Mabiala

Gilbert Youlou Mabiala, known professionally as Prince Youlou, is a Congolese singer-songwriter, and guitarist. Known for his high-pitched voice, he is regarded as one of the significant figures of Congolese rumba. He began his musical career in 1962 with the Brazzaville vocal group Les Griots and, in 1963, joined the vocal club Les Mains Blanches. Youlou rose to prominence in 1966 after he became a member of the Kinshasa-based band TPOK Jazz, led by Franco Luambo and Vicky Longomba. Within a short time, he established himself as one of Kinshasa's leading songwriters, with hits such as "Numéro Ya Kinshasa", "Dodo Tuna Motema", "Nakopesa Yo Motema", and "Billy Ya Ba Fiancées". In 1972, he joined Lovy du Zaïre, the band led by Vicky Longomba, before co-founding Somo Somo in 1974 with Jean Kwamy Munsi. He returned to TPOK Jazz in 1976 and composed the hit "Kamikaze" for the band's twentieth-anniversary double album. The following year, he left TPOK Jazz alongside Michel Boyibanda and, with Marcel Loko Massengo "Djeskain", founded Orchestre Les Trois Frères in Brazzaville. The band achieved immediate success with "Petit Chéri", "Saley", "Nenette", and "Diallo". From Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Youlou_...) under Creative Commons Attribution CC-BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...)