In Ethiopia, where public criticism of the government is a famously risky career move, the nation's biggest musician has just dropped a track that appears to do exactly that. Teddy Afro, whose real name is Tewodros Kassahun, released a song called Das Tal, meaning "put up the tent," and it has been viewed more than seven million times on YouTube since its release on Thursday. The song references a traditional mourning tent, with the 49-year-old star singing that he is grieving for a country he says has been lost.
The build-up to the release was already shrouded in controversy after a preview event for journalists in the capital Addis Ababa was cancelled for unclear reasons. On the track, Teddy Afro laments, "The spirit of being Ethiopian is now pushed away," and asks, "Where can someone go to mourn, where do you cry? In the place that raised me, in the village where I grew up, I have become a stranger, like someone with no country." This is familiar territory for the artist, who has been a thorn in the side of previous governments.
Two decades ago, he was imprisoned for 16 months for being involved in a hit-and-run incident, charges he said were politically motivated. His last album, 2017's Ethiopia, which topped the Billboard World Albums chart for weeks and called for national unity, had its official release in the country blocked by authorities. That period saw huge anti-government protests over the marginalisation of the Oromo ethnic group, which eventually led to the downfall of the then-prime minister.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who is Oromo himself, came to power promising a new age of unity. Teddy Afro initially embraced that promise but has since grown disillusioned by widespread violence and government actions, including the two-year civil war in the north that led to hundreds of thousands of deaths. He released a song in 2022 expressing concern over "tribalism," a theme his latest track builds upon. As Prime Minister Abiy frequently stresses he is working for unity - a message likely to get louder before June's general election - Teddy Afro's seven-million-view tent seems pitched directly in the public square.