Although Rahel Yohannes is a formidable singer who has performed professionally for more than 20 years, her entrance into the music business was almost by coincidence. As the manager of an Ethiopian restaurant, Rahel would frequently entertain her customers by singing acappella for them. Her patrons began to look forward to her impromptu performances and, one evening, one of these admirers brought the late Ketema Mekonnen,a well-known singer and player of traditional musical instruments, to the restaurant and asked Rahel to join him in a song. She performed the haunting ballad “Tizita,” and a couple of years later released her first album. Since then, she has released nine recordings as a professional singer.
In addition to being an accomplished entertainer, Rahel is an entrepreneur who has owned and operated various nightclubs in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Presently, she entertains ever-growing audiences at the Fasika Restaurant and Nightclub in Addis Ababa.
"Menelik", a tribute to the late emperor of Ethiopia, is Rahel’s tenth album.
Tamrat Desta (born 1978) is an Ethiopian singer and vocalist.Desta was born in the small town of Tiqur Wuha near Awassa, Ethiopia. He is the second of three children, all boys. After a few years, his family moved to Shashemene and later back to Awassa, where he finished high school. All three towns are located approximately 250 kilometers south of the capital Addis Ababa.
In 1998, Desta moved to Dire Dawa, situated 515 kilometers east of Addis Ababa, to live with his guardian and work at Cherqa Cherq Yekenet Buden. There, he received basic training in performing with a band and as a vocalist.
In 1999, Desta relocated to Addis Ababa to pursue his music career. He released his first album Anleyaym in 2004, for which he received wide acclaim. Most of the lyrics on this CD were written by Habtamu Bogale, and the melodies of six tracks were composed by Tamrat.
Teshome Mitiku has had a legendary 40-year career at the heart of Ethiopian music, forming the massively popular Soul Ekos Band in Addis Ababa in the 1960s. The Soul Ekos Band was the first to combine traditional Ethiopian music with the sounds of electric soul and popular music from the West. They were absolute superstars, playing regularly in front of crowds of 60,000 in Ethiopia, Sudan & Kenya.
Teshome Mitiku is featured on volumes 1, 4 and 10 of the celebrated Ethiopiques series from Buda Records, featuring thrilling discoveries from the vibrant Ethiopian music scene of the 1970s. His songs have also appeared on the popular Rough Guide series of world music compilations.
In 2002, Boston's popular Either/Orchestra released Afro-Cubism, a six-track album that contained Teshome Mitiku's "Yezemed Yebaed."
Teshome Mitiku's 1995 release Yegna Neger was voted the Best Ethiopian Album Recorded Since 1990 in a recent poll by Netsanet, Le Ethiopian Radio, of Ethiopians living worldwide.
Now based in Washington DC, Mitiku formed the first Ethiopian Music Association in 1996. About forty artists from the association performed in front of 3,000 people at the Kennedy Center for a benefit concert that raised money for two orphanages in Addis Ababa and Debra Berhane.
Topia's Deluge is essentially a mainstream pop recording. Its synth lines and other melodic instrumentation, its orchestrations and beats -- both danceable and smooth -- will sound familiar to any listener of contemporary radio, and Mitiku's robust yet subtle vocals and rounded-edges production is easily accessible. English translations are provided, allowing the listener more of an opportunity to understand that these songs of love and spirituality, equality and freedom from hate and war, are universal, language barriers be damned. Mitiku's clear and strong voice, and these uncomplicated songs, would no doubt translate beautifully to a live situation as well.
01. Teshome Mitiku - Ambati (Ere Ney, Ere Ney) (5:12) 02. Teshome Mitiku - Topia's Deluge (Egzio) (8:11) 03. Teshome Mitiku - Love Me As I Am (6:23) 04. Teshome Mitiku - Song of Songs ("Wubnesh Mahaleye Mahaleye Ze Solomon") (7:57) 05. Teshome Mitiku - Senseless War (Badme Shiraro) (6:57) 06. Teshome Mitiku - Hallelujah (Hallelujah) (5:44) 07. Teshome Mitiku - Song for Alem (Alemeye) (6:20) 08. Teshome Mitiku - Lies (Mot Yalesh Manew) (5:40) 09. Teshome Mitiku - Ballad of Amariah (Menew Zem A (5:38) 10. Teshome Mitiku - Leader-Less People (Ande Sew) (6:10) 11. Teshome Mitiku - Far Away But Near (5:52) 12. Teshome Mitiku - Why (Ere Menew) (6:41)
