# Loningisa

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Loningisa
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Loningisa.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loningisa
> Source revision: 1281232946
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

**Loningisa** was a studio and [record label](/source/Record_label) based in [Kinshasa](/source/Kinshasa) in the [Democratic Republic of the Congo](/source/Democratic_Republic_of_the_Congo) (then known as [Zaire](/source/Zaire)). Loningisa was made famous by the emergence of the [African rumba](/source/Soukous) band [OK Jazz](/source/OK_Jazz), whose music became popular, and a big influence on [African](/source/African_popular_music) and [Congolese](/source/Music_of_the_Democratic_Republic_of_the_Congo) popular music.

OK Jazz included [Francois Luambo Makiadi](/source/Francois_Luambo_Makiadi) who emerged as Zaire's first true pop-music star, particularly his [guitar](/source/Guitar) playing abilities. Franco and all other members of OK Jazz were tutored and trained at the Loningisa studios. The group formed via collective participation at Loningisa's studios as players in sessions and the house band titled 'Bana Loningisa' (Loningisa Boys).

Loningisa was founded by [Congolese Greek](/source/Greeks_in_the_Democratic_Republic_of_the_Congo) brothers Athanase and Basile Papadimitriou in 1950. In 1974, [Mobutu](/source/Mobutu) ordered the company be confiscated and turned over to a native Congolese owner as part of his [Zairianisation](/source/Authenticit%C3%A9_(Zaire)) program. Zairianisation was not favorable for the company, and the Mobutu regime turned the company back over to its Greek owners in 1976.[1][2]

## See also

- [List of record labels](/source/List_of_record_labels)

## External links

- [Retroafric.com](http://www.retroafric.com/html/sl_notes/02xcd_3.html)

## References

1. Pinther, Kerstin; Förster, Larissa; Hanussek, Christian (2012). *Afropolis: City Media Art*. Jacana Media. pp. 230–31. ISBN 1431403253.

1. Gary Stewart, *Rumba on the River*, Verso, 2003, ISBN 1-85984-368-9, ch. 2

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Loningisa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loningisa) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loningisa?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.