World music star Papa Wemba dies after collapsing on stage

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FILE - In this file photo dated Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2004, Congolese pop star Papa Wemba is hoisted by supporters as he leaves the courthouse in Bobigny near Paris Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2004. Wemba, known around the world as “the king of Congolese rumba,” died aged 66, on Saturday April 23, 2016, following his collapse on stage during a concert in Ivory Coast. (AP Photo/Remy de la Mauviniere, FILE)

KINSHASA, Congo – Papa Wemba, known around the world as “the king of Congolese rumba,” has died following a collapse on stage during a concert. He was 66.

Congolese Culture Minister Baudouin Banza Mukalay confirmed the musician’s death Sunday, calling it a “great loss for the country and all of Africa.”

Footage from the concert in Ivory Coast where Wemba was performing Saturday night shows his fellow performers rushing to his side as he collapsed. The cause of death wasn’t immediately known.

Fans around the world are mourning the loss of the popular musician, whose real name was Jules Shungu Wembadio Pene Kikumba.

Wemba was also a style icon, inspiring generations of young, fashionable Central Africans known popularly as sapeurs.

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