When jazz started to take root in Kinshasa, it was primarily with instrumentalists, especially the guitarists. The monthly jazz concerts in the Wallonia-Brussels Center and the annual jazz festival were followed with interest by the public, but were still missing a central component that would provide a link to the people: lyrics and singers.

Because of the language barrier (English) and the complexities found in the compositions themselves — in particular the tightly spaced notes and the improvisational manner inherent to jazz — orchestras were initially satisfied with introducing the musicial “theme” of the song, then continuing on into instrumental improvisation.

At a certain point, the Music Club of Kinshasa, the organization which promoted jazz in collaboration with the Wallonia-Brussels Center and the American Arts Center, had the idea to create a choral group that would perform jazz songs without instrumentation, simply using four voices. The contraction of “jazz has cappella” gave the group its name of Ja'Cappella.

Today Ja’Capella’s repertoire includes a dozen jazz standards translated into Lingala: Summertime (Semaled), Fly Me to the Moon (Kumba nga Na lola), In the Still of the Night (Na kimia ya butu), Plenty Good Room (Esika eza), etc. The group has taken part in three editions of the Kinshasa Jazz Festival and given numerous concerts through the city.