Bonga

José Adelino Barceló de Carvalho (born 5 September 1942), better known as Bonga Kwenda, is an Angolan folk and semba singer-songwriter. He left Angola when he was 23 years old to become a track and field athlete, becoming the Portuguese record holder for the 400 metres (Angola was at the time one of Portugal's five African colonies). He had already begun his singing career at the age of 15.

Carvalho abandoned athletics in 1972, concentrating solely on his music, and immediately became famous in his native Angola, as well as in Portugal. After the Carnation Revolution in April 1974, he would become a hit both with immigrants from the ex-Portuguese colonies, and Portuguese of both African and European descent. He has released over 30 albums, singing in Portuguese and Kimbundu, his native language.

Awards

Bonga received the distinction of "Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters" by the French government. The honourable mention was delivered by the Ministry of Culture of France in a ceremony on 10 December 2014 in Angola.