FEATURES THE JOSÉ LOUIS AND THE PARADOX OF LOVE TRACK REMIXED BY GLOBAL ARTISTS VANYFOX, MAJOOS, AND SPILULU
LISTEN / SHARE "NO NO NO" (VANYFOX REMIX) HERE
BUY / STREAM JOSÉ LOUIS AND THE PARADOX OF LOVE HERE
USA & CANADA TOUR DATES START JAN 25
Today, Congolese-born, Montreal-based musician, songwriter, and DJ, and Polaris Music Prize winner Pierre Kwenders (he/him) releases the No No No - Remixes EP – a three-track collection featuring renditions of the José Louis and the Paradox of Love album highlight “No No No” by a range of international remixers and vocalists. The original electro-R&B cut from the 2022 Polaris Music Prize winning album, which was produced by Haitian artist Michael Brun, is Kwenders at his most unguarded, revelling in personal discovery and a celebration of the Congolese women and artists who impressed upon his upbringing. With new input from Portuguese-Angolan producer Vanyfox, and fellow Congolese artists Spilulu, and Majoos, who layers verse in Lingala, Swahili, and French over the song’s alluring dancefloor rhythm, the No No No remixes delve into the borderless flavours and propulsive beats that courses through Kwenders’s music.
Of the remix collection and its contributors, Kwenders had this to say: “‘No No No’ remains one of my favourite songs off of the album. It's a true declaration of love where everything and anything is possible, and there are no boundaries. Vanyfox is the future of the Batida sound and has no limits to what he can do. Having him on the remix EP is both an honour and a privilege. We’re spreading the love. Spilulu is a pioneer of electronic music in DRC. True veteran of nightlife culture. His rendition of ‘No No No’ is pure dancefloor love anthem! With his smooth and sensual vocals Majoos represents for the new generation of Congolese music. I couldn't be prouder to have them all on this EP.”
LISTEN / SHARE "NO NO NO" (VANYFOX REMIX) HERE
Motivated by the intricacies of love, the songs of José Louis And The Paradox Of Love weave together narratives from memories of the past, sketches of Kwenders’ hometown, and reflections on the future. A storyteller at his core, Kwenders has dedicated the heart of his creation to the life-giving force of motherhood, and his journey to discover his own identity: “This is for all the kids from the diaspora,” he said in his Polaris acceptance speech. “This is my story. This is my African story, my Congolese story, my Canadian story. This is your story if you want to take it as yours.” With José Louis and the Paradox of Love, Kwenders arrives at a new juncture – a moment of resonance, carefully wrapped in freewheeling tapestry, hinged in reverence to its diverse heritage, yet reveling in the inventive combination of its elements.
WATCH / SHARE “KILIMANJARO” LIVE
Seamlessly working across Congolese rumba, contemporary electronic music, pop-R&B, and jazz-infused progressions with a range of global collaborators including Tendai Maraire (Shabazz Palaces), Branko (M.I.A., Buraka som Sistema), Michael Brun (J Balvin), and Uproot Andy (Bomba Estereo), José Louis and the Paradox of Love is both an embrace of African musical tradition and an evolution of it. Singing and rapping in Lingala, French, English, Tshiluba, and Kikongo, Kwenders similarly weaves his stories across the boundaries of language and geography.
WATCH / SHARE “PAPA WEMBA”
Born in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kwenders borrows his stage name from his late grandfather, a widely respected businessman and community figure. Following his mother’s footsteps, in 2001 Kwenders immigrated from Congo to Montreal. While his music-filled childhood quickly earned him a reputation as the most energetic dancer at family gatherings, it was when he joined a youth choir in 2008 that Kwenders would have his first formative musical experience. Collecting taxes by day and singing in church by night, this spiritually fitting experience brought a young Kwenders clarity on the role that music would come to play in his life. Inspired by “sagacité,” a way of life coined by Ivorian singer Douk Saga, which means to work hard in order to play hard, a decade later he’s established himself as an architect of modern African music, creating a unique blend of Afro-inflected electronic sounds inspired by Congolese rumba, propagated by the Moonshine collective, a post-border multidisciplinary artist collective celebrating diversity in dance culture since Kwenders co-founded it in 2014.
WATCH / SHARE “HEARTBEAT” (FEAT. ANAIIS)
José Louis and the Paradox of Love is a culmination of personal growth and the musical dexterity he has honed over the years, converging his strong songwriting capabilities with the bravado he possesses as a DJ. The album explores an ongoing search to grasp the universal complexities of romance, sometimes through the lens of Kwenders’ own intimate experiences. The songs were written and recorded over the span of four years, and the album is symbolically titled after his birth name, José Louis Modabi. Through different moments of tension and release, romantic narratives of beauty and disaster are packed into powerful poetic musical vignettes.
WATCH / SHARE “KILIMANJARO” (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
José Louis and The Paradox of Love transcends genres including electronic, pop, and rumba and includes instruments such as the guitar, saxophone, cello, trumpet, violin, and the Mbira, a plucked idiophone from Zimbabwe. Just as Kwenders writes from a multilingual perspective, so too does he draw on his musical influences, searching for the precise nuances offered by each one to best emotionally resonate. Dipping into a wide range of cultures, the album was written and recorded over four years in a handful of cities across borders including Montreal, Lisbon, Seattle, New York City, Philadelphia, and New Orleans.
BUY/STREAM JOSÉ LOUIS AND THE PARADOX OF LOVE
Praise for José Louis and the Paradox of Love:
“Paradox presents Kwenders as a global ambassador of self-determination, pointing the way toward a more evolved era — one in which solidarity is built on the dance floor and multiple histories can coexist within a single, enigmatic individual.” - Rolling Stone
“An endlessly listenable album that combines pop, R&B and electronic music with melodic vocals delivered in Lingala, French, English, Tshiluba and Kikongo." - The New York Times
“A beguiling mix of multilingual Afropop, rhumba and R&B.” - The Guardian
"Kwenders exudes a poetic warmth that's hard to resist." - MOJO
"Kwenders isn’t simply blazing a narrow trail here but opening up a cosmos." - PopMatters
“A wonderland of rich textures.”- CBC Music
PHOTO CREDIT: Julien Herger // HI-RES DOWNLOAD
ALBUM ARTWORK // HI-RES DOWNLOAD
PIERRE KWENDERS ON TOUR // TICKETS HERE
2023
01/25 - Winnipeg MB - West End Cultural Centre
01/26 - Saskatoon SK - Broadway Theatre
01/27 - Regina SK - Artesian
01/28 - Edmonton AB - 9910
02/01 - Los Angeles CA - Peppermint Club
02/02 - San Francisco CA - Rickshaw Shop
02/03 - Portland OR - Polaris Hall
02/04 - Seattle WA - Madam Lou’s
02/08 - Victoria, BC - Capital Ballroom
02/09 - Vancouver, BC - Biltmore Cabaret
02/11 - Calgary AB - The Palace, Block Heater Festival
02/16 - Ottawa, ON - Club Saw
02/17 - Toronto, ON - Adelaide Hall
02/24 - Montreal, QC - Aussgang