Listen to Four Sizzling Hot Remixes of Pierre Kwenders’ Afro-House Single “Popolipo”

Montreal's Pierre Kwenders (real name José Louis Modabi) is one of the central figures in the city's pan-African dance music scene, specializing in electro-rumba influenced by his Congolese roots. The singer and DJ has been previously nominated for numerous Canadian awards, and is known as an incredibly charismatic live performer.

Today we're premiering four remixes of his song "Popolipo" (originally off his 2014 album Le Dernier Empereur Bantou), which twist the song into drastically new forms. "The original version of 'Popolipo' was very hard to mix during my DJ sets due mainly to the atmosphere and vibe present where I was playing, so that's where the idea of remixing 'Popolipo' came from," explained the artist to THUMP via email.

Portuguese-Angolan collective Throes + the Shrine take the track in a kuduro-influenced direction, while Jumping Back Slash inserts his South African gqom influences into his mix. Live band Afriquoi flips the song into a joyful afro-funk house jam and Dutch producer Sjamsoedin turns it into a slow-burning tech-house track.

Listen to the remixes and check out Kwender's upcoming shows below.

Pierre Kwenders Tour Dates:

April 16 - Wakanda Club - Montréal, QC
April 22 - Festival International de Louisianne - Lafayette, LA
April 23 - Festival International de Louisianne - Lafayette, LA
July 8 -Québec City Summer Festival - Québec City, QC
July 13 - Ottawa Blues Fest - Ottawa, ON

Pierre Kwenders is on Facebook // Twitter // SoundCloud

Throes + The Shine is on Facebook // Twitter // SoundCloud

Jumping Back Slash is on Facebook // Twitter // SoundCloud

Afriquoi is on Facebook // SoundCloud

Sjamsoedin is on Facebook // Twitter // SoundCloud