Aster Aweke
Aster Aweke ( Amharic : አስቴር አወቀ; * 1960 in Gonder ) is an Ethiopian singer . Often referred to as the " Aretha Franklin of Africa", Aster Aweke lived in Washington, DC in the United States for the past few years
Life
Aster Aweke grew up in Addis Ababa as the daughter of a senior civil servant and began singing at the age of thirteen. Her role model was Bizunesh Bekele .
Her career began in the mid-1970s as a singer at the traditional Hager Fikir Theater in Addis Ababa . She also sang in local Ethiopian bands. She was eventually discovered and promoted by one of Ethiopia's most famous music producers, Ali Tango . On her first recordings she was accompanied on the flute by Sakari Kukko , the head of the Finnish jazz folk band Piirpauke , who was in Addis Ababa at the time. Aster Aweke then sang in the established band Roha , but left them after a short time because of the restless and uncertain political situation during the revolution .
In 1981 Aster Aweke decided to leave the country and came to Washington via California , where she has lived ever since. In 1989 she was 'discovered' by US world music producers and released her first US album Aster . In 1996 she visited Ethiopia for the first time.
Discography
- Ethiopian Groove - The Golden Seventies , Paris, 1994, Buda Musique ( contains three of her very first recordings )
- 1989 Aster ( Columbia Records )
- 1991 Kabu ( Columbia Records )
- 1993 Ebo ( Barkhanns )
- 1997 Live in London ( Barkhanns )
- 1999 Hagere ( Kabu Records )
- 2002 Sugar ( Kabu Records )
- 2004 Asters Ballads ( Kabu Records )
- 2006 Fikir
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Kezira · The Popular Music of Ethiopia V. Retrieved August 31, 2017 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Aweke, Aster |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Ethiopian singer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1960 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Gonder |