Kékélé is a Lingala word for a fibrous vine that climbs trees in the tropical forests of the Congo River basin. Ropes woven from kékélé are still used in some places to build bridges across forest streams. By calling their group Kékélé, then, perhaps, Papa Noel, Syran Mbenza, Wuta-Mayi, Nyboma Mwan Dido, Jean-Papy Ramazani, Loko Massengo, Bumba Massa and Yves Ndjock are thinking of their long career paths as strands woven together to make something strong, something that spans divisions - geography, generations, genres - and allows musicians to continue on their journey, and to return home to their musical origins: Congolese Rumba.
