Marie Daulne

Marie Daulne (born 20 October 1964), also known as Zap Mama, is a Belgian singer-songwriter, performer, composer, lyricist, activist, video artist, and ethnic-vocal therapist born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Daulne is the founder and lead singer of the music group Zap Mama, whose second album, Adventures in Afropea 1, was the best-selling world music album in 1993.

Daulne specializes in polyphonic, harmonic music with a mixture of African instruments, R&B, and hip-hop, and emphasizes voice in her music. Daulne calls her music "Afro-European".

As a solo artist, her remix of James Crawford's 1953 song "Iko-iko" was featured in the film Mission: Impossible 2.

Early life Daulne was born in the city of Isiro in east Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo). Her father, Cyrille Daulne, was a white Walloon (French-speaking Belgian); her mother, Bernadette Aningi, was a black Congolese Bantu woman from Kisangani. She was their fourth child. When she was a few days old, her father was captured and killed by Simba rebels, who were opposed to mixed-race relationships, during the Congo Crisis. Marie's mother, with her brother and two sisters, survived by hiding in the forest. Her three older siblings were sent to be protected by Pygmies. Several months later, they were airlifted by Belgian paratroopers and flown to Belgium. but a leg injury led her to abandon sports and focus on music.

Musical interests Daulne was exposed to both Congolese and Belgian musical traditions while growing up. Her mother maintained Congolese vocal traditions within the family, while her father's relatives introduced her to Walloon and liturgical music. During adolescence, she also developed an interest in American jazz, blues, reggae, hip-hop, and vocal harmony traditions.

Although Daulne recalled her mother singing songs from Congo Kinshasa around the house, she did not teach them to her children, fearing they would "grow up too African" and instead stressing mastery of French. However, while Daulne was encouraged to adopt Belgian language and culture, her mother kept Congolese music alive in the household.

After hearing a recording of traditional Pygmy music, Daulne returned to Congo-Kinshasa in 1982 The original idea behind the group was a vocal ensemble in which no singer would dominate the others, having no lead voice.

Daulne first met Sylvie Nawasadio when they sang together on the train to school; they met again at university in Brussels, when Daulne asked Nawasadio to be part of a "cultural singing group". She subsequently met Sabine Kabongo in Brussels as well. Through her audition, Daulne discovered Marie Alfonso, and later Sally Nyolo.

Zap Mama received initial support from the French Belgian Community Government's cultural department. The group came to the attention of Teddy Hillaert when he saw them perform at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels; he later became their manager. The group began recording their first record, Zap Mama, at Studio Daylight in Brussels. The album was completed in October 1991 and released by Crammed Discs, the Belgian record label of Marc Hollander and Vincent Kenis.

Adventures in Afropea 1 In 1992, Zap Mama came to the United States for the first time to perform at New Music Seminar in New York City. There, they met David Byrne and agreed to let him reissue Zap Mama's first recordings as Adventures in Afropea 1 through Luaka Bop Records.

While Sabsylma was being created, Director Violaine de Villers made a documentary, Mizike Mama (1993), that presents a group portrait of Zap Mama.

Solo artistry, Seven and A Ma Zone After the success of the first two albums, Daulne put her music on hold for a few years to birth and mother her daughter Kezia Quental, who later adopted the stage name K.ZIA. In 1996, Daulne decided to dissolve the group and make a formal break from a cappella, retaining the Zap Mama name but looking for new collaborators in the United States.

Ancestry in Progress and Supermoon Daulne (center) toured in 2007 to support the release of Supermoon appearing at the 8 x 10 in Baltimore, Maryland on 1 November 2007. Daulne (center) performs with Zap Mama at Bumbershoot 2007 in Seattle on September 3, 2007.

Daulne moved to New York in 2000. A music video for the single "Bandy Bandy", featuring Erykah Badu, directed by Bill Fishman and produced by David Herrera (music video director), aired on VH1.

Daulne moved back to Belgium after three years in the United States and now calls Brussels home. Daulne finds life easier in Belgium. "With Supermoon, I reveal the way I chose to live when I started my career," says Daulne. The album title refers to recreation in both senses of the word, both as self-renewal and as relaxation and pleasure. Almost all the songs on the album are collaborations with other artists, including G. Love, Vincent Cassel, and Bilal. ReCreation was nominated by the NAACP Image Awards in the Best World Music Album category.

In 2018, Zap mama released her Eighth album, Eclectic Breath a return to vocal techniques blending a cappella and beatbox Pumzi is a gathering of vocalists and human beatboxers engaged in polyphonic techniques and other catchy tunes infused with Afro, Latin and house rhythms. Zap Mama will be releasing this album without the support of a record label.

In 2019, Daulne was given an honorary master's degree by the jazz department of the Antwerp Conservatory of Music.

Odyssée and Body and Mind Zap Mama returns with Odyssée, a resolutely modern album open to the world, written entirely in French and in which she defends the concept of Afropeanity. "In our country, unlike in the United States, Belgian-Congolese history is not documented: we have to go and find the unsung heroes. For the texts, Daulne was able to count on the help of her brother Jean-Louis Daulne and Salvatore Adamo. Daulne reaches an age when legacy is essential. Daulne's humanitarian commitment includes support for a living hero, Dr. Mukwegue, winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize.

In 2020 to 2021, Daulne undergoes training in Sonotherapy and Music Therapy, to bring her support to the women survivors of the Panzi hospital in Bukavu (Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo).

In 2022 Daulne travels to Goma and Bukavu where she runs Ethno Vocal Therapy workshops, composes and records music with young women, and provides psychological support for the socio-economic reintegration of survivors treated by DR. Denis MUKWEGE. Daulne will be back after the screening of Thierry Michel's documentary on Chaine RTBF Belgique, in which she participated in the debate to testify about the strength of the eastern congoles woman in the name and honor of her mother, Nabindibo Aningi, a heroine and survivor of the massacres in the region and puts together the pieces of a complex jigsaw puzzle of successive wars involving hundreds of armed groups, some Congolese, some foreign, guilty of mass crimes whose primary victims are women. In the Congo, rape has become a weapon of war, with victims now numbering several generations. And it continues to this day. A debate moderated by Nathalie Maleux will take stock of the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It will bring together the documentary's director, Thierry Michel, experts in international law, geopolitics and human rights, Marie Daulne of Zap Mama, and Bernard Cadière, surgeon at Hôpital Saint-Pierre and Dr. Mukwege's right-hand man.

Daulne co-composed the soundtrack for "Enkai", the final episode of the Afrocentric animated anthology series Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, alongside her daughter K.Zia.

Daulne continues her musical journey by offering a therapeutic experience through her online digital release, "DAY by DAY." This wellness music incorporates affirmations that aim to uplift and inspire listeners.

In 2024, Marie Daulne narrated lines written by Andrée Blouin in the documentary film Soundtrack to a Coup d'État, presented at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. The film was later nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 97th Academy Awards in 2025. At the awards ceremony, Zap Mama's red carpet appearance, where her outfit carried a political message in support of Congo, was covered by outlets such as The New York Times, BBC, Huffington Post, WBAL-TV, and Euronews.

That same year, Zap Mama celebrated the 30th anniversary of her career with two major concerts produced by Green House Talent: one at Ancienne Belgique in Brussels, and another at Roma in Antwerp. They featured special guests from the Belgian diaspora, including Selah Sue, K.Zia, Coely, and Fredy Massamba. In 2025, she will present a new concert concept titled Ancestry in Motion, a collaborative performance with her daughter K.Zia, centered on the theme of love and intergenerational connection, touring across Europe.

Marie Daulne officially made her debut as a theater actress in 2025, performing at the KVS Theatre in Brussels in the multilingual play Amour/Liefde, directed by Pitcho Konga Wamba. Sharing the stage with four other actresses, the production is based on L’amour est très surestimé (2007), a collection of short stories by Franco-Algerian author Brigitte Giraud.

Other work Back in Belgium, Marie Daulne teaches African polyphony and polyrhythm in private music schools in Brussels.

An active humanitarian, Daulne devotes much of her time working to protect human rights and fight global poverty with organizations such as Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, CARE, and the United Nations. The word Zap also means to switch TV channels or in this context to switch cultures.

The ensemble combined the sound styles of Congolese Pygmies with the vocal styles of European choral traditions. "I think it’s because I’m born of two cultures. From my African heritage, I receive a lot of different harmonies and sounds and ways to express melody and probably all of this makes up what I do," says Daulne.

Daulne has made trips to Africa for musical inspiration. "I fell in love. The weather, the music — I was like a child. It's amazing," Daulne says. (2015) Google doodle for International Women's Day (2014) G. Love & Special Sauce, "Drifting," ReCreation (2009) Vincent Cassel, "Paroles Paroles" and "Non Non Non," ReCreation (2009) Bilal, "Sorrow, Tears & Blood", Love for Sale (2001–03) Hans Zimmer, "Iko Iko" Paramount Mission impossible II (2000) Speech of Arrested Development, "I Wonder", The Grown Folks Table (2009); "Each Step Moves Us On," 1 Giant Leap 2 Sides 2 Everything Soundtrack (2008) and "W'happy Mama," A Ma Zone (1999) Alanis Morissette, "Arrival," 1 Giant Leap 2 Sides 2 Everything Soundtrack (2008) Michael Franti, "High Low," All Rebel Rockers (2009); "Hey Brotha," Supermoon (2007); "Listener Supported," Stay Human (2001); "Poetry Man" and "Baba Hooker," Seven (1997) Sérgio Mendes, "Waters of March," Encanto (2008) Kery James, "Après la pluie," À l’ombre du show business (2008) Tony Allen, "African Diamond," ReCreation (2009) and "1000 Ways," Supermoon (2007) David Gilmore, "Toma Taboo," Supermoon (2007) Arno, "Toma Taboo," Supermoon (2007) and "Brussels Mabel," Arno (2002) Ladysmith Black Mambazo, "Hello to My Baby," Long Walk to Freedom (2006) Carl Craig, "Bandy Bandy," Luaka Bop Remixes (2005) Common, Talib Kweli, and Questlove, "Yelling Away," Soundbombing III (2002)/Ancestry in Progress (2004) Questlove, Bahamadia, and Lady Alma, "Show Me the Way," Ancestry in Progress (2004) Scratch, "Wadidyusay?," Ancestry in Progress (2004) Erykah Badu, "Bandy Bandy," Ancestry in Progress (2004) and "Bump It," Worldwide Underground (2003) Common, "Ferris Wheel," Electric Circus (2002) DJ Krush, "Danger of Love," Zen (2001) Black Thought, "Rafiki," A Ma Zone (1999) The Roots, "Act Won (Things Fall Apart)," Things Fall Apart (1999) Boyd Jarvis, "Alibokolijah," Alibokolijah (1999) Maria Bethânia, "Glytzy," Ambar (1997) King Britt, "Poetry Man," Seven (1997) U-Roy, "New World," Seven (1997) Michael Franti, "Comin' to Glitcha", Chocolate Supa Highway (1997) Dana Bryant, "Food," Wishing from the Top (1996) Al Jarreau "I Shall Be Released" (1994) TARATA Jacques Hugelin "Le Grand REX" (1993)

Music in film, television, and video games Kizazi Moto (ENKAI) Disney + (2023 ) animated film Baadasssss (Coucou) Mario Van Peebles Metisse/Cafe au Lait ("Take Me Coco") Harsenio hall show (PLEKETE) So You Think You Can Dance Australia TV (Brrlak) Belpop classic CANVAS VRT documentary Pourquoi j'ai pas mangé mon père PATHE Jamel Debouz animated film) EA Sports' FIFA 10 ("Vibrations") So You Think You Can Dance ("Take Me Coco," "Moonray" and "W'happy Mama") Cashmere Mafia ("1000 Ways") Brothers & Sisters ("Supermoon") MTV's Road Rules ("Rafiki") MTV's 9th Annual Music Awards ("Iko Iko") Sesame Street ("Brrrlak") The Man ("Bandy Bandy") The God Who Wasn't There ("A Way Cuddy Dis") In the Cut ("Allo Allo") Tortilla Soup ("Call Waiting") Mission: Impossible 2 ("Iko Iko") La Haine ("J'attends," "Discussion," and "Songe") Elle Magazine commercial ("Sweet Melodie") Mercedes-Benz commercial ("Din Din") Nokia 7250 commercial ("Take Me Coco") BMW commercial ("Danger of Love") Fiat commercial ("Allo Allo") Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? ("Brrrlak")