Barbara Kanam

Barbara Kanam Mutund was born on September 27, 1973 in Bukavu, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo), from a family of twelve children, in the province of South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She completed part of her studies at the Belgian School in Kinshasa, then in Lubumbashi to obtain her secondary school leaving certificate at the Belgian School in Kolwezi, the second economic city in the DRC, before starting university studies. in South Africa and Ivory Coast. After brilliant studies in international business, she discovered singing in 1993 with the Devotion orchestra and perfected her vocal technique at the prestigious Psalmody Academy and Rhema Bible School in Johannesburg. At the same time, she learns to play the guitar. After 13 months, she created an acoustic repertoire for a tour called "One Woman Acoustic Show" played in the DRC and South Africa in 1995. In 1998, she met Alpha Blondy and Koné Dodo during a concert in Abidjan which gave birth to her first album with gospel sounds, Mokili, in 1999. On this occasion, she appeared for the first time on television in front of Ernest Adjovi, founder of the Koras Awards, to which Barbara is invited. 2000 is a glorious year, the young Diva knows the joys of motherhood and settles in France. After a two-year break, she resumed her musical career and released her second album, Teti, in 2003. It was a sensational entry into the world of world music that opened the doors to international fame for her, with the single Bibi Madeleine, in homage to her grandmother. The success was such that the Congolese won the Kora for Best Female Hope and the title was reissued in 2005. She began promoting the album Teti in her native country, the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2008, she launched her own label, Kanam Music. In 2009, Karibu was released, where she reconnected with her Congolese roots. 2015 is the year of release of the Zawadi album. Then follow, in 2019 and 2020 two titles. The first, Bouger, is an Afrobeat track with a strong wake-up call to work; the second, Flèche, a melody of angels interpreted by a crystalline and penetrating voice, revives the nostalgia of Congolese rumba. She is an artist who writes, composes and produces music under her own label, Kanam Music. Thanks to her vocal strength, she is considered in Africa as one of the most beautiful female voices. Through a richly varied discography, Barbara Kanam conveys values ​​of peace, love, happiness and other social facts that challenge, raise awareness, mobilize and call for action. Aware of the Congolese and African musical richness, Barbara Kanam remains open to all musical sensibilities, which leads her to several featurings with the great figures of song in the world such as Papa Wemba in Triple options, Fally Ipupa in 100% love, Jacob Desvarieux, Edgar Yonkeu, Sergeo Polo in Amour à deux, amour à vie, Angèle Asselé in Les parasites, Nayanda (Brick and Lace) in Je dis oui, Suzy Trebeau in Naio and Kandia Kora in Give me time