U.S. Africa Command staff listened and watched as musicians, artists, and citizens of Kinshasa, told their story through music and dance during a documentary film which was featured as part of AFRICOM's Educational Movie Series, January 31, 2011

"You don't see Kinshasa, you hear it," said one of the Congolese people interviewed for the film, which was produced by R. Barret & F. de la Tullaye of Belle Kinoise Productions.

Narrated by Jupiter Bokondji, the bandleader of Okwess International, the film guides the viewer through the streets of Kinshasha, introducing a variety of people who sing about their day-to-day struggles to break out of the ghetto.

Bokondji talks about the difficulties of being a musician in Kinshasa, where the cost of a music album is equivalent to approximately one month's salary. Knowing that the local people cannot afford to pay money for his music, Bokondji frequently performs free concerts.

The film opens with him performing such a concert in Kinshasa, which quickly comes to a halt when the electricity blacks out.

"The DRC is the cradle of the world's music, all untapped," Bokondji said, explaining that there are more than 450 ethnic groups in the DRC, each with its own type of music. He also said that to the Congolese people, music is the way back to their roots and helps to heal the population in a time of unrest and poor economic conditions.

Viewers got a taste of some of the music throughout the film, which included homemade guitars, drums, rappers, and ndombolo, a genre of music that is popular in the region.

The film also provided an inside look at the hardships in Kinshasa, which is filled with "street kids" or "shegues," who wander the streets without a home, and many of whom settle in the forest forming shegue communities.

Bokondji said he hopes that one day these other young, budding "Jupiters" will be able to break out of poverty and finish his story.