(Source: NPR) – Compared to a dark club full of dancing fans, a humid and sunny Austin afternoon at Joe’s Crab Shack isn’t the ideal setting for a Debo Band performance. But once the group began digging into “Ney Ney Weleba,” it didn’t take long to get caught up in Debo Band’s deep, infectious groove.
Led by Ethiopian-American saxophonist Danny Mekonnen and fronted by magnetic singer Bruck Tesfaye, Debo Band infuses its dance-friendly songs with the Ethiopian pop and funk music of the 1960s and ’70s. (more…)
(Source: Real World Records) – Samuel Yirga’s musical life so far has been full of obstacles: social restrictions, family regulations, hurdles thrown up by the reality of life. Yet in the face of all of this, the young and gifted pianist who grew up in the capital of Ethiopia and the centre of the heady mix of music known as Ethiojazz, has at last had his time to shine.
Drawing from some of the most pivotal points in his life, Steve Jobs, chief executive officer and co-founder of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, urged graduates to pursue their dreams and see the opportunities in life’s setbacks — including death itself — at the university’s 114th Commencement on June 12, 2005.
By iZefen – Ethiopian veteran radio journalist Alemneh Wasse tells a candid story of the love life of an artist that lived life on the edge and yet was a revered icon of Ethiopian music lovers across generations. He presents a personal account of Asnaketch’s enigmatic love triangle set in the glitz and glamour of Addis Ababa’s nightlife.
(Source: Ethiopian Reporter) – The question of whether her parents were her true biological relatives did not cross Betelhem Tilahun’s mind for a moment during the first twenty years of her life. The illusion was finally shattered on the day she received an anonymous phone call from a woman claiming to be her biological mother.
It was difficult news to digest and hard to accept that the people she had called parents had adopted her. (more…)
Directed by Miguel Llansó and Yohannes Feleke. Screened at the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2011.
The search for a dog provides an exceptional insight into Ethiopia’s capital. Friends, street kids and a film crew go in search of ‘Leman’ who is missing in a city full of stray dogs. Do we believe what we see? Shot in ten days with the help of the local population.
By iZefen – “The kirar is a really powerful instrument” reckons a bed ridden Asnaketch Worku. “It stirs my emotions”, she reminisces fighting to hold back the swelling tears in her sunken eyes. She ironically longs to play the instrument hanging on the wall in front of her – an instrument that she played magically in the heydays of her artistic life. “My hands failed me” she whispers and pauses.
