Authenticité (Zaire) in different local languages including Kikongo, the "river which swallows all streams". Mobutu also renamed the Congo river and the national currency "Zaire", and referred to them as ""Les Trois Z—Notre Pays, Notre Fleuve, Notre Monnaie"" ("The Three Zs—Our Country, Our River, Our Money"). In addition, cities were renamed appropriately (Léopoldville as Kinshasa and Stanleyville as Kisangani). Streets, bridges, and other geographic features, as well as the armed forces, received name changes. Zairians were urged to drop their Western or Christian names in favor of Zairian names. Mobutu changed his own name from Joseph-Désiré Mobutu to Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku
Zaire 74 performers included Celia Cruz and the Fania All-Stars. The concert was promoted by Don King, as a part of the build-up to the Ali-Foreman fight. At the time of the event, Zaire was run by Mobutu, a dictator who became notorious for corruption, nepotism and human rights violations. Mobutu agreed to host the festival and to help cover its costs. A documentary about the Zaire 74 festival, entitled "Soul Power", was released in 2009. The film was directed by Jeffrey Levy-Hinte, who served as the editor on the 1996 documentary "When We Were Kings", which also contains selections of concert