Radio Congo Belge ( French, "Belgian Congo Radio") was a radio broadcaster in the

Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964. Colo ...

(the modern

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

) which played an important role in the early development and popularisation of

Congolese rumba Congolese rumba is a popular genre of dance music that originated in the Congo basin during the 1940s, deriving from Cuban son. The style gained popularity throughout Africa during the 1960s and 1970s. It is known as Lingala in Kenya, Uganda, ...

music across

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

in the aftermath of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Radio Congo Belge was established in

Léopoldville Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one of ...

(modern-day Kinshasa) as a means of broadcasting news and propaganda to the white population of the Congo and German-occupied Belgium in

. It broadcast for the first time on 1 October 1940. However, this role was assumed by Radiodiffusion nationale belge (RNB) in May 1943 which also broadcast from Léopoldville and Radio Congo Belge became more focused on broadcasting within the colony. It played an important role in providing Congolese musicians with access to foreign musical influences. It was particularly influential in introducing

Afro-Cuban music Music of African heritage in Cuba derives from the musical traditions of the many ethnic groups from different parts of West Africa that were brought to Cuba as slaves between the 16th and 19th centuries. Members of some of these groups formed thei ...

into the Congo through groups such as

Septeto Habanero A septet is a formation containing exactly seven members. It is commonly associated with musical groups but can be applied to any situation where seven similar or related objects are considered a single unit, such as a seven-line stanza of poetry. ...

and

Trio Matamoros The Trío Matamoros was one of the most popular Cuban trova groups. It was formed in 1925 by Miguel Matamoros (8 May 1894 in Santiago de Cuba – 15 April 1971; guitar), Rafael Cueto (14 March 1900 in Santiago de Cuba – 7 August 1991; gu ...

. According to historian Gary Stewart, Radio Congo Belge, together with

Radio Brazzaville Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

and Congolia, "contributed to the critical mix of music taking shape on the banks of the

Congo River The Congo River ( kg, Nzâdi Kôngo, french: Fleuve Congo, pt, Rio Congo), formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the second largest river in the world by discharge ...

". The station has also been described as an "important promotional outlet for local music" which allowed Congolese bands and recording studios to emerge. After the independence of Congo-Léopoldville in 1960, the station was renamed Radiodiffusion Congolaise ("Congolese Radio Broadcasting"). Other radio services of the period included OTC and Radio Léopoldville.

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