'Being modern does not mean being western': Congolese Popular Music, 1945 to 2000

Abstract

Between 1945 and 2000, Congolese music achieved a level of popularity in Africa that no other country on the continent can rival. This article addresses a fraught issue in understanding the appeal of Congolese music in Africa. The musicians themselves perceive their work to be modern. For many Africanists, however, 'the modern' and 'the traditional' are not analytical terms but ideological, masking Western imperialism and capitalism. Turino, writing about music in Zimbabwe, has proposed 'the cosmopolitan' and 'the indigenous' as alternatives with analytic value. However the cosmopolitan and indigenous are not concepts commonly used by the Congolese musicians from the urban dance bands I have interviewed. They said their music was modern from its inception and that they were amongst the first to modernise their music in Africa. This was part of the explanation they gave for the continental success of their music. Is this perception a form of false consciousness imposed by Western definitions of what it means to be modern? Or does the idea of the modern have meanings for Congolese musicians that have been domesticated, and could be used outside of this context as a basis for analysis?