Fally Ipupa N'simba (born 14 December 1977), known professionally as Fally Ipupa, is a Congolese musician and dancer. Often referred to as the "Prince of Rumba," he is known for his tenor vocals and his fusion of contemporary and traditional Congolese music genres, including Congolese rumba, soukous, and ndombolo. His lyrics often explore themes of romance, suffering, and joy. Ipupa made his public musical debut in 1997, at the age of 20, with the Kinshasa-based band Talent Latent. In 1999, he joined Koffi Olomide's Quartier Latin International. In 2006, Ipupa signed a record deal with Obouo Productions for his debut solo studio album, Droit Chemin, which achieved gold status after selling over 100,000 copies within a month. In 2007, he won the Césaire de la Musique prize for Best Male Performer. That same year, he became the first Congolese artist to sell out the Olympia Hall in Paris. In April 2008, Ipupa won the Kundé d'Or for Best Central African Artist. His second studio album, Arsenal de Belles Melodies, included chart-toppers such as "Chaise Électrique" (featuring Olivia) and "Sexy Dance," which became some of his signature songs. The album quickly sold over 100,000 copies. Ipupa subsequently won two consecutive 2010 MTV Africa Music Awards for Best Francophone Artist and Best Video for "Sexy Dance". His third studio album, Power "Kosa Leka", which spawned his breakout singles "La vie est belle", "Ndoki", and "Service," sold over 30,000 copies in a month. In 2013, Ipupa won the Trace Urban Music Award for Best African Artist and was signed to the French record label AZ by Julien Creuzard. Following Creuzard's departure from AZ to establish Elektra France in May 2016, Ipupa remained with the label. His fourth studio album, Tokooos, became his most commercially successful and was certified gold and platinum by SNEP, making him one of the first Kinshasa-based Congolese solo artists to achieve that honor. Tokooos also peaked at number five on the French iTunes chart. His fifth studio album, Control, released in November 2018, debuted at No. 10 on the French iTunes chart, while the single "Canne à sucre" became the first Congolese song by a Kinshasa-based artist to enter SNEP's top 200 most downloaded singles in France, reaching No. 91. Ipupa released his sixth studio album, Tokooos II, in December 2020. On 25 February 2022, he released Tokooos II Gold. In 2014, Forbes ranked Ipupa as the sixth richest African musician, and Jeune Afrique named him one of the fifty most influential African artists in 2018. He is the most-streamed French-speaking artist on Boomplay and the most-followed Congolese artist on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Ipupa is also known for his humanitarian work: he is the founder of the Fally Ipupa Foundation, which provides aid to marginalized groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including victims of sexual violence and disease, as well as orphans.
