KOFFI OLOMIDE : The Diary Of A Mad,Misogynistic Brute With A Dark History Of Violence,Tempers And Brutish Arrogance

Born Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba,Koffi Olomide is one of the most illustrious and fabulously wealthy African music geniuses with a rich musical repertoire that stretches from Kinsasha to Paris.

A former band member of the late Papa Wemba’s musical in the 80’s,mainly as a songwriter, Mr. Olomide is also a brilliant brain who boasts a master’s degree in Mathematics (yeah,right) from the prestigious University of Paris – on a scholarship.

Despite the fact that he had a fairly-elite upbringing,his solo journey through music has been characterized with much fanfare,excessive flamboyance,violent outbursts and deplorable displays of acute arrogance and violation of laws.

Intemperate and churlish,Kofi hastily left Papa Wemba’s band and start his own which would go on to make him an indomitable African musical god with millions of adoring fans from Nairobi to Brussels,Dakar to Havana.

With an idiosyncratic Congolese panache, Koffi Olomide drove millions of women crazy with his flashy attires,excessive jewelry,spectacular performances and a generally colorful lifestyle.

But beneath the flashy glitz and flair lay a soulless monster,a callous scoundrel and a temperamental demon who would prey on his female dancers and beat up hapless strangers for the flimsiest of reasons.

Despite being endowed with a beautiful voice and a brilliant composition skills,Koffi still was unable to detach himself from the Devil he was quickly becoming – a volatile,foul-mouthed brute and misogynist who picked up fights with pretty much anyone from Television reporters to his former associates.

As the popularity of his legendary Quartier Latin International orchestra band continued to grow,so did the man’s status too eventually changing him from a backbencher in Papa Wemba’s Viva La Musica band to a musical avatar with millions of crazed fans across the globe.

He counts sexy Congolese heartthrob Fally Ipupa as one of his protégés and former band members.

With classic hits like Coucou and Affaire d’etet, Koffi created an almost unassailable lead in African music making him the King of Soukous and also an omnipresent household name across the Continent and beyond.

He captivated all,young and old,male and female.

But this wild fame and incredible fortune didn’t stop this man from butchering his own vaunted image at every little opportunity he got.

In between being charged with raping THREE of his backup dancers in France and beating up his former producer in Congo,Koffi also has been involved in violent altercations with media people and fans at his dramatic shows across the Continent.

But with every transgression,Koffi emerged unscathed and unremorseful ready to,yet again,brutalize his victims just one more time.

His rape charges were dropped. And his assault charges against his former producer were settled too – with the aggressor emerging the victor. Yet again.

But this was not just anyone. This was Koffi Olomide, Africa’s first true superstar who had walked in and out of palaces,wined and dined with Kings and Presidents numerously and commanded millions of devoted fans across the globe.

He was a Congolese treasure – absolvent in any accusation or charge whatsoever.

Koffi Olomide was power personified.

Rhumba Star,Koffi Olomide

The bigger he became,the more brutish he became – and,eventually,untouchable.

He sang on… Dazzled on,recorded on and danced on even while leaving a trail of total destruction,abuse and violence behind him.

His temper was like a Caribbean typhoon – destructive,brutal,out of control and viral.

Few dared stand in his way. Few dared cross his golden paths,he brutalized anything that stood in his way,arrogantly and haughtily, while still keeping the hits coming and the colorful videos rolling.

As his fame grew,so did his eccentricities.

He became Africa’s Freddie Mercury and Prince all rolled up into one – enigmatic,eccentric,wildly popular,enchanting and with a penchant for giving himself a slew of crazy nicknames most of them blasphemous and terribly over the top.

Besides baptizing himself in over 35 outlandish honorifics,Koffi Olomide proceeded to insult the entire Catholic Church by calling himself “Pape Noir” or “Black Pope” a move that deeply angered the Catholic community most of whom were his loyal fans.

He went slow on the name.

But kept the rest 35 most of them ludicrous and wacky including “Treizième Apôtre” meaning,Thirteenth Apostle.

Wherever he went,the man courted controversy with his outlandish style,nonconformist nature and politically-charged music.

Born to a Congolese father and a Sierra Leonese mother,the 60-year old composer went on to get married and sire seven children and then giving them some of the quirkiest names yet including Miss Universe and Nike.

Slowly,his music started getting overshadowed by his freakish offstage persona and many run-ins with the law.

But there never emerged a composer that was as brilliant,as freakishly talented and so supremely gifted as this architect of violence and sexual depravity.

He became so astute at his craft,so magical with his touch that music critics and reviewers started calling him the new “Luambo Makiadi”,the esteemed King of Rhumba.

But Koffi’s fame didn’t come without a caveat – you would have to put up with one of the biggest, most aggressive bastards music ever generated.

He became a musical legend as well as a terror – and that became the man’s legacy.

This past weekend,the man was caught on camera kicking one of his FEMALE dancers hard in her belly after what appeared to be an argument with his crew.

One wonders how many times this shameless brat has done that and just how much emotional and physical harm he has inflicted on his poor dancers over the decades.

That he had the audacity to beat up his dancer in full glare of the media and presence of the police,at an International Airport nonetheless,says a lot about what a terrible terrible abuser Koffi Olomide really is.

Now,he’s persona non grata in Kenya. And,not surprisingly,in Zambia too where an upcoming concert he was booked to perform in has been canceled with immediate effect.

After his deportation from Kenya, he was met with an angry mob at the Kinshasa airport that booed him all the way to his disgusting cab.

There’s a saying that goes,when the gods want to destroy a man,they first make him mad.

The dog has now gone mad. His end has come.

Don’t Rest In Peace.