false 2479455 1 Mobutu Sese Seko, who ruled Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) from 1965 until 1997, was fond of saying "happy are those who sing and dance," and his regime energetically promoted the notion of culture as a national resource. During this period Zairian popular dance music (often referred to as la rumba zairoise) became a sort of musica franca in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa. But how did this privileged form of cultural expression flourish under one of the continent's most brutal authoritarian regimes? In Rumba Rules, the first ethnography of popular music in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bob W. White examines not only the economic and political conditions that brought this powerful music industry to its knees, but also the ways that popular musicians sought to remain socially relevant in a time of increasing insecurity. <P> Drawing partly on his experiences as a member of a local dance band in the country's capital city Kinshasa, White offers extraordinarily vivid accounts of the live music scene, including the relatively recent phenomenon of libanga, which involves shouting the names of wealthy or powerful people during performances in exchange for financial support or protection. With dynamic descriptions of how bands practiced, performed, and splintered, White highlights how the ways that power was sought and understood in Kinshasa's popular music scene mirrored the charismatic authoritarianism of Mobutu's rule. In Rumba Rules, Congolese speak candidly about political leadership, social mobility, and what it meant to be a bon chef (good leader) in Mobutu's Zaire. 2486656 30 6 2008 Rumba Rules: The Politics of Dance Music in Mobutus Zaire total:4|4:1|3:3| 4 13 4 1 3 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 04 17:16:40 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 04 17:25:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jun 23 05:47:56 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 23 05:47:56 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Jun 20 15:55:42 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 20 15:56:01 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Tue Sep 08 06:47:55 -0700 2009 Mon May 18 23:07:10 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 08 06:47:55 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=2479455