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This morning, wanting something lively to cheer up my teething toddler, I popped in my two Ethiopian CD’s, and we did some dancing. Unfortunately both CD’s have only Amharic writing on them, so I can’t tell you exactly what we listened to. But after the research I did this evening, I can tell you a little about some of the most popular Ethiopian musicians right now.
A hugely popular Ethiopian singer is Ejigayehu Shibabaw, or Gigi as she is popularly known. Her music is a fusion of contemporary and traditional sounds. It is relaxing, and just all around good listening. Her CD’s, including her most recent, called Gold and Wax, can be purchased here or here
Another popular Ethiopian musician, Tewodros Kassahun, also know as Teddy Afro, is one of the most popular musicians in Ethiopia today. He is a composer, a writer, and a vocalist. One of his biggest claims to fame is a very popular song he wrote in 24 hours during the Athens Olympics. The song is called ‘Tarik Tessera’ which means ‘history is made’ and honored the legendary athlete Haile Gebre Selassie. You can read more about Teddy Afro here.
Aster Aweke is an Ethiopian singer who lives in the United States. She has made three albums: Aster (1990, Columbia Records), Kabu (1991, Columbia Records), and Ebo. She was born in Gondar, Ethiopia, and started her career at Hager Fikir Theatre in Addis Ababa. You can listen to a clip of her music here and you can buy some of her CD’s here.
For more traditional sounding Ethiopian music, you may want to check out the set of CD’s released by Buda Records called Ethiopiques. There are 21 volumes in the series. Some of the music is recent and some is traditional. Most consist of recordings from the late 60’s and early 70’s, and blend Ethiopian music with American rhythm & blues and jazz influences with a sound similar to James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, and John Coltrane.
Also read Jazz from the Horn of Africa: ‘Ethiopiques’, Wikipedia: Ethiopian singers and Music of Ethiopia And if you have an Ethiopian CD you enjoy, please leave me a note in comments and tell me about it.
Thanks – my husband just asked what I would like to add to his latest Amazon order to qualify for the “free” shipping – I see I can get Gigi there as well. I think Anne featured this on her blog, too – looking forward to it.