Harare — CONGOLESE kwasa kwasa musician Kanda Bongo Man arrived in Harare yesterday ahead of his one off show at the Harare International Conference Centre slated for tomorrow (Tuesday).

He is set to join the likes of Alick Macheso and Tongai Moyo among others at the Miss Tourism Zimbabwe national finals as the main act.

An elated Kanda Bongo Man who was spotting a black hat, black top and a matching pair of trousers said he felt a lot like "a homeboy".

"My very first show in Zimbabwe was held at this hotel (Rainbow Towers) then it was called Sheraton Harare and so I'm very happy to be here.

"For me Zimbabwe is home and I feel like a homeboy because I've been here four times," he said with a French accent.

Addressing a bevy of 30 beauties gunning for the Miss Tourism Zimbabwe title, Kanda Bongo Man urged the girls to be good ambassadors of not only Zimbabwe but also Africa at large.

"You're now like Zimbabwean passports or an ID that you show to everywhere you go...so if you behave badly it reflects on your country," he said.

He, however, described the war that engulfed the DRC in recent months as sad and that he hoped for the best in that country.

Karikoga Kaseke, the ZTA boss said they hoped to use Kanda Bongo Man to market Zimbabwe as Africa's number one destination.

"We have no apologies for being Africa's number one tourism destination. The World Tourism Authority accorded us the status and we hope Kanda Bongo Man will make his own assessment and then spread the message.

"We're not going to tell him what to say but we hope he will see the real situation in Zimbabwe and tell the truth and the truth is the true message," he said.

Kanda Bongo Man who last performed in Zimbabwe exactly 10 years ago came with a five-member piece band excluding the dance queens.

"I had shows in Nairobi last week with the girls but they did not make it today but they are coming with another flight," he said.

ZTA has held a host of successful music concerts that saw US R&B singer Joe Thomas, Rhumba maestro Awilo Longomba among others taking part.

The idea behind the concert is to combine modelling and music in bringing people of different cultures together.

Kanda Bongo Man, now based in Europe for the purposes of popularising his music, has been to five continents.

His discography includes Iyole (1981), Lela Lela (1987), Sai Liza (1988), Kwassa Kwassa (1989), Isambe Monie (1990), Zing Zong (1991), Sango (1992), Soukous in Central Park (1993) and Sweet (1995) among others.

He is sure to leave fans screaming for more.