Photo by Kim Yang.
Kinshasa-born, Canadian-based artist Pierre Kwenders has made a career of fusing Congolese rumba with R&B and a medley of pop and dance styles from both sides of the equator and prime meridian. He's released two solo albums thus far — 2014's Le Dernier Empereur Bantou and 2017's MAKANDA at The End of Space, the Beginning of Time — as well as Classe tendresse, a 2020 collab with Clement Bazin. Next Friday, April 29, he'll release his third studio LP, José Louis And The Paradox Of Love, via Arts & Crafts. And today, he's shared its fourth single, "Your Dream," featuring NGABO and produced by Branko.
The new song — which follows previous album offerings "Papa Wemba" (premiered with The FADER in January), "Heartbeat," and "Kilimanjaro" — finds Kwenders and NGABO alternating English lyrics with Lingala and Swahili ones, respectively, over Branko's slow, contemplative beat.
“‘Your Dream’ is to me an open letter to my mother (we can hear her voice in the beginning and end of track),” says Kwenders. “Often in life we find ourselves confronted with ourselves and the family juxtaposition of traditional expectations of a man’s life. In this song, I respond to my mother. Embracing her love and blessings certainly but letting her know that my dreams are valid and I want to be able to be the best man I can be for myself. My family grew up in a different time. A time of harsh black and white dangerous stereotypes. It’s important for me that I don’t fit into any of those.”
Listen to the new track and view Kwenders' upcoming tour dates below.
Pierre Kwenders 2022 tour
May 4 - Toronto, ON - Music Gallery (Album Launch)
May 6 - Montreal, QC - PHI Centre (Album Launch)
June 24 - Carleton-sur-Mer, QC - Festival Blue Blue
July 9 - Toronto, ON - Field Trip
July 21 - Baie-Saint-Paul, QC - Le Festif!
July 30 - Montreal, QC - Osheaga Festival
August 3 - Montreal, QC - Pride
August 7 - Québec, CA - Festival Cigale
