Félix Manuaku Waku

Who is Félix Manuaku Waku?

Félix Manuaku Waku, also known as Pépé Fely is a soukous guitarist from the Democratic Republic of Congo. He has been described as the foremost Congolese solo guitarist of his generation, and is credited with establishing the guitar as the lead instrument in contemporary Congolese music.

A graduate of the Kinshasa Academie des Beaux Arts, he was one of the founders of the popular Congolese musical group Zaiko Langa Langa, and his rapid guitar-playing style was a distinctive feature of the group's music. In Zaiko Langa Langa he attracted critical praise for his ability to play continuously without a break, and earned the sobriquet "the hardest left hand in Zaire". He was noted also for his mastery of the sebene technique.

He left Zaiko Langa Langa in 1979 to found another group, the award winning Grand Zaiko Wawa, which in turn cultivated a new generation of prominent Congolese musicians.

Manuaku Waku now lives in Lausanne, Switzerland, where he has formed a new group named African Mambo.