Category: Ethiopia
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Kassmasse’s Wish for Ethiopia
By Dagem Teferra When it comes to reflective music that analyses society and advocates for positive change, there aren’t many that do it as well as Kassmasse. His trailblazing genre of Hip-Hop is almost always accompanied by historical reminders and nods to the vast culture in Ethiopia. In his song, Sewasew, he chooses to skip the
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Meet Kassmasse, the star lighting up Ethiopia with his new ‘perspective’
Fikru Sema (stage name: Kassmasse) is the hottest young artist in the Hip Hop scene of Ethiopia. His sudden rise to fame came two years ago in 2021 with the release of his first EP called ‘Maleda’. Kassmasse quickly became a point of intrigue for me when I learned that we had gone to the
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HHAP Ep 79: Hip-Hop culture as a space where Black identities are negotiated and presented
The first episode of 2023 is a special episode on hip-hop as a cultural space where Black identities can be negotiated and presented. The research project was part of a larger seminar project with the University of Maryland College Park on African/Black Diaspora Studies. The larger project was funded by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The overall project focused on: “the dynamics of race, ethnicity, gender, and interactions between and among first and second-generation African diaspora immigrants and native-born African Americans in the U.S.” My project explores representations of Black identities and shared experiences by African hip-hop artists in the US. The initial objective was to examine the music of 2nd generation African artists in America to understand how they Represent Black identities Discuss shared experiences Represent Africa This was done via a content analysis of their songs & interviews. The artists could be classified as Millennials and Generation Z artists. The music of these artists differed from the music produced by 1st generation African hip-hop artists. The early 2000s saw a small group of hip-hop artists who had all migrated to the US around the same time, usually for college, and would find varying degrees of success. Some of these artists stayed in the U.S., and others migrated home. Their presence was followed by an increase in African music on mainstream platforms, & collaborations between artists of 1st or 2gen African ancestry and artists of multi-generation African ancestry (African Americans). Hip-hop’s structure as a genre that is largely autobiographical lends itself to being a conduit for meaningful conversations around race, gender, sexuality, & politics. These artists were nuanced in their coverage of topics of immediate concern to other African & diaspora communities. We saw the articulation of African American & African connections among several African hip-hop artists who came to the U.S. in the early 2000s. Interestingly, many of those artists were Ghanaian. Artists like Blitz (the Ambassador) Bazawule, Wanlov the Kubolor, M3nsa, Minista of Agrikulcha, & M.anifest all arrived from a country whose place in Pan-African history had been well established. “In our simplicity we are elegant/so to us your coat and tie are irrelevant/give up my culture for your religion?, I can’t” Wanlov the Kubolor, “Gentleman” Other artists like, K’naan (Somalia), Krukid/Ruyonga (Uganda), and Shad (Kenya) also would speak to those connections. These artists may have impacted the growth of African music in the US. This growth led to the emergence of afrobeats artists like Davido, Burna Boy, Shatta Wale, & others. In looking at 2nd generation African artists, I identified 583 songs by 10 Millenial and Generation Z artists. Again, I wanted to find representations of Black identities, African identities, and shared experiences between Africans and African Americans. The artists were: Nipsey Hussle (1985): Los Angeles/African American and Eritrean parents Lola Monroe (1986): Washington, DC/Ethiopia Bas (1987): New York/Paris/Sudan Maxo Kream (1990): Houston/Nigeria Wale (1984): Washington, DC/Nigeria Amine (1994): Portland/Eritrea & Ethiopia Chika (1997): Montgomery (Alabama)/Nigeria Doja Cat (1995): Los Angeles/American and South African parents Earl Sweatshirt (1994): Chicago & Los Angeles/African American and South African parents Thutmose (1995): New York/Nigeria In the review of over 500 songs, very few had any references to African identities or shared experiences. Notable exceptions include Wale’s “My Sweetie” and Amine’s “Roots” During the research, it became clear that there needed to be a more global consideration of what African hip-hop artists are saying. There are artists in other parts of the Diaspora, especially in England, France, and Australia and they complicate Black identities even further. A more global perspective on Black identities helps us to fully understand hip hop’s role in shifting conversations around identity. Some of the European artists studied include. Sefyu (1981) France/Senegal Shay (1990) Belgium/Congo Bree Runway (1992) UK/Ghana Stormzy (1993) UK/Ghana Niska (1994) France/Congo Enny (1994) UK/Nigeria Little Simz (1994) UK/Nigeria Shaybo (1996) UK/Nigeria J Hus (1996) UK/The Gambia The songs played in this episode are “My Sweetie” by Wale “Roots” by Amine “I Want” by Enny “Woman” by Little Simz “En noir et blanc” by Sefyu “Gentleman” by M.anifest and Wanlov the Kubolor “Dollar & a Dream” by Blitz the Ambassador
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Queen Monroe
Fershgenet Melaku, better known as Queen Monroe or Lola Monroe, is a famous Ethiopian hip hop artist raised in Washington DC. Born in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Lola Monroe began her music career as a video model in many hip hop music videos before transitioning to creating her own music. She released “Boss
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Tigist Asmare “Alen Wey” Music Video
Tigist Asmare is a popular Ethiopian musician. Her most famous song, Amelegnaw, gained widespread popularity and topped charts for over 8 weeks. Her most recent song and music video, Alan Wey, however, has garnered attention much quicker due to its social and political message. Not only did the lyrics directly comment on her stance on
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The Controversy and Awareness of Tariku Gankisi’s “Dishta Gina”
Tariku Gankasi is an Ethiopian musician from Jinka, a southern region of Ethiopia. Gankisi was a soldier in the military during the Ethio-Eritrean war. He saw much violence and his music has preached love and peace ever since he returned home. As he gained fame his message of unity began to spread. Recently, Ethiopia has faced
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aminÉ: The king of duality
Adam Aminé Daniel, known as Aminé, is a first-generation American rapper that was born and raised in Portland, Oregon. He is the son of Ethiopian and Eritrean parents who moved to the United States n the early 1990s. Aminé’s debut single “Caroline” was THE hit of summer 2016 and is still regarded for making that
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Roots that made me- Amine
Amine is a Ethiopian/Ertriean-American Grammy and BET hip hop awards nominated rapper and songwriter. His career skyrocketed when he released “Caroline” in 2016 it was number 5 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs in 2016-2017. He performed on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and released additional songs to his first album “Good for you”.
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AMINE: ROOTS AND BEING IN LIMBO, THE FIRST GENERATION EXPERIENCE
For many in the United States, Amine represents a story much like their own. The talented Portland-based rapper’s roots lie in Ethiopia and Eritrea, making him a first generation immigrant. In many interviews, Amine describes his parent’s struggle to come to the United states and acclimate – but also his own feelings of misrepresentation within
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Aminé: The son of ETHIOPIAN immigrants who made it big
Aminé is an American rapper who is the son of Eritrean-Ethiopian immigrants. His parents moved to the United States in the 1990s, where both of them worked hard to achieve their idea of the “American Dream.” Aminé graduated from Benson Polytechnic High School, moving on to attending Portland State University. However, shortly after his attendance,