Ethiopia: A Song Upends a Country

 Ethiopia Insight published on 16 May 2026 a commentary titled "Teddy Afro's Mourning Tent and Ethiopia's Fractured National Imagination" by Belete Addis Yemata, University of Melbourne.

Teddy Afro's new album Etorika and especially the opening song, Das Tal (loosely meaning "pitch the tent"), has drawn more than 140 million views on You Tube and ignited political arguments throughout the Ethiopian community.  Reactions to Das Tal exposed political loyalty, politico-religious alignment, competing ideas of Ethiopia, and different opinions about Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.  

Ethiopia: Teddy Afro's "Tikur Sew"

The Africa Collective published on 8 June 2014 commentary titled "Teddy Afro's 'Tikur Sew'--Ethnic Politics and Historical Narrative" by Rachael Hill, a PhD candidate at Stanford University.  It is an analysis of Ethiopian singer Teddy Afro's 2012 album Tikur Sew (Black Man).  The title track is a tribute to late 19th and early 20th century Emperor Menilik II and the Ethiopian victory over the Italians at Adwa.

Menelik II, Battle of Adwa, and Teddy Afro

I normally devote this blog to weighty academic issues. Thanks to Pambazuka News, I ran across a fascinating music video titled Tikur Sew by the well known Ethiopian musician Teddy Afro. Tikur Sew is a tribute to Emperor Menelik II and the 1986 Battle of Adwa where Ethiopia defeated Italian forces. It captures the mood in Ethiopia in 1896. The outstanding music and solid video presentation are worth watching. It runs for 10 minutes and contains some violence.

The video concludes that "there is no future without the past."

Click here to read the background piece by Pambazuka News and then click to watch the video.