The movement which grew from the slums of Jamaica in the 1930s made considerable impact as a political and social force.
A DISHEVELLED man sits in a street cafe occasionally brushing back his thick dreadlocks which are half hidden beneath a floppy red, gold and green coloured beanie.

For almost a decade, Addis’s music scene has been dominated by one-man bands. Live performances and musical albums have surrendered to keyboard-led music. As music is suffering from the lack of taste it used to have when played by whole bands, few believe that this is the best thing that has happened to music. Yet for those who like to reach out to world class music, playing in just a one man band is unacceptable. Kenny Alyn, an African-American musician who has been storming Addis with his music and charm over the past five years, is one such individual.

Just last month the sensational singer Teddy Afro announced, during a radio interview, that he is now working on a new album that is scheduled to come out in four months' time. Releasing three new singles earlier than the announced time was something audiences never anticipated. Other requests the station frequently receives include Bezawit Zeleke’s Menor and Jemeriaylew and Yismalem Berega’s Amrobish. Despite the two singles being released some time ago, they are still getting significant attention.

Arbaminch, August 27, 2010 (Arbaminch) - A cultural and research center is under construction in Arbamnch Town, Gamogofa Zone of South Ethiopia Peoples' State at a cost over 44.5 million Birr, the zonal culture, tourism and government communication affairs department said.
Department head, Dogiso Gona told ENA on Thursday that the center will be used to conduct research and display cultural heritages of five nationalities in the zone.

Debo Band, an Ethiopian groove collective, demonstrates unique instrumentation – including horns, strings, and accordion. Formed in 2006 by Danny Mekonnen, an Ethiopian-American jazz saxophonist and a PhD candidate in ethnomusicology at Harvard University, the group has garnered awards such as The 2010 Boston Phoenix's Best World Music Act and in 2009, The Boston Music Awards'...

A few months ago, saxophonist Abatte Barihun watched a disconcerting program on the Ethiopian channel from his Bat Yam apartment - a documentary on the failed attempts of Israeli singers of Ethiopian descent to break into the pop market in their native land. "That was a sad movie," says Barihun. "Those singers took all their savings, traveled to Ethiopia, paid a lot of money to record their songs, issued the songs there....

Art of Ethiopia 2010 is scheduled to open today a four-day exhibition of nearly 40 precious works of art created by 40 of Ethiopia’s most recognized artists. Being held at the Sheraton Addis Hotel, the exhibition will be on display until next Monday from 10am to 10pm with entrance free.

Mahlet Afework a.k.a. Mafi started costume designing at her late teens. As opposed to many aspirants, she played with the available materials, and unlike many at her age, she has made her name in fashion at the mere age of 22. Mafi has made an achievement that many young designers only aspire to reach. Winning the young designers’ competition in Addis Ababa and being selected as the upcoming designer to present her show in Kenya,...

Debo Band, the Boston-based jazz collective which focuses on Ethiopian grooves, is gearing up for a U.S. debut tour featuring Fendika, a group of traditional Azmari artists from Addis Ababa. Debo Band's expanded 14-piece project will tour select American cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Richmond (VA), Chicago, and Milwaukee with expected highlight stops at the Chicago World Music Festival and NYC's Joe's Pub.

Some universities and colleges have been accused of granting honorary degrees in exchange for large donations. Honorary degree recipients, particularly those who have no prior academic qualifications, have sometimes been criticized if they insist on being called "Doctor" as a result of their award, as the honorific may mislead the general public about their qualifications.

An assistant manager from Ethiopia, Yacob, was one of the housemates in the fourth edition of Big Brother Africa, in 2009. Along with his partner Hannington, he became the first pair, and the tenth person to be evicted from the House on Day 35. This year he returned to Big Brother Africa as one of the 14 "all stars" of Season 5, entitled Big Brother All Stars.

Standing 1.95 meters tall, Yacob is the tallest contestant on Big Brother Revolution. He has graduated in the field of Communication with a BA degree. The 28 year-old Ethiopian contender entered the Big Brother Revolution for the experience of a lifetime and promises viewers honesty during his spell of time in the house.

Yacob is desperate and doing all he can to bring the 200k to home. What is expected from the rest of us is just “not to forget to vote for him every 61 min.” at the following link.

http://bigbrotherafrica.dstv.com/Vote/

During the second half of the 20th century, cosmopolitan Ethiopians were delighted to see jazz giant Duke Ellington receive their country's Medal of Honor from Emperor Haile Selassie. At the same time, by contrast, a Berklee College of Music-trained Ethiopian jazz legend, Mulatu Astatke, who fused jazz and funk with his country's folk and Coptic Church melodies, was unknown in the United States.

In the 1960s, as the tastes of American jazz fans shifted from bebop to avant-garde, Ethiopian musicians were establishing a tradition whose compositions are just reaching American ears. Why did it take so long for this riveting, emotionally charged music to arrive?

Ashenda is a coming of age holiday for girls,which is celebrated in the Tigray Region. It is held in the month of Nahase, the twelfth month of the Ethiopian calendar. Remember that Ethiopia has thirteen months, the thirteenth being a leap month to round out the year. Girls dress up in their finery, plait their hair and don makeup and jewelry. They sing, dance, and play drums, moving from home to home, business to business, or to passersby on the street. In appreciation, they are given money which is donated to charities, most often their churches.

In August of 2009, I was joined by Rachel Scott (Washington) and Barbara Baker (Arizona) in setting up the Dr. Thomas Hooyman Library and Media Center with Ato Yohannes Gebregeorgis, Founder and Executive Director of Ethiopia Reads. Coincidentally, the dedication of the library was held during Ashenda and the festivities became the inspiration for Ato Yohannes’ book Tirhas Celebrates Ashenda: An Ethiopian Girl’s Festival. The book was illustrated by Rahel Bluts from Mekelle and translated into Tigrigna by Girmay Gebru also of Mekelle. This book joins a number of other titles written or published by Ato Yohannes in an effort to connect Ethiopian children with books written in their own language and based on their culture.

Art of Ethiopia 2010 will be exhibiting nearly 400 works of art from 40 of Ethiopia's leading established artists as of the 21st of August to the 24th of August 2010 at the five-star Sheraton Addis Hotel, A Luxury Collection Hotel, in the astonishing Lalibela Grand Ballroom from 10am until 10pm with entrance being complimentary. In addition to the well-know artists' work which will be on display people will also get the opportunity to view the works of some exciting new talents showcasing the future of Ethiopian art.

40 artists spanning three generations: leading and renowned Artist Laureate Maitre Afework Tekle, Ale Felege Selam, Worku Mammo, Abdurahman M. Sherif, Worku Goshu, Tadesse Belaineh, Bekele Abebe, Zerihun Yetmgeta, Desta Hagos, Tadesse Mesfin, Wosene Worke Kosrof, Teshome....

Ravaged by years of civil war, an oppressive military regime and on-going conflict with neighbouring Eritrea, Ethiopia’s economy remains poverty-stricken, despite recent increases in GDP. In musical terms, however, it is rich beyond measure … as Australia discovered at WOMADelaide 2010. Thanks to an inspired piece of programming, one of Ethiopia’s national treasures, the charismatic veteran singer Mahmoud Ahmed, performed at WOMAD’s southern hemisphere flagship festival in Adelaide, along with the cream of the country’s up-and-coming talent in the band Dub Colossus.

In many ways, the landlocked state once known as Abyssinia is the sleeping giant of African music — the continent’s eastern counterpart to the West African powerhouses of Mali and Senegal. Ethiopia’s music reflects its amazingly diverse mix of ethnicities and languages, its long history and its status as one of only two African countries not to have been colonised by European powers. Even though it employs a unique modal system (pentatonic with characteristically long intervals between some notes), Ethiopian music is totally accessible to western audiences.