Bizunesh Bekele (; 1936 – 25 June 1990) was an Ethiopian soul singer who was popular in the 1960s and 1970s of

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during ...

. She was referred to as "

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

of Ethiopia" due to similitude of musical style. Her songs were released in her native

Amharic language Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic languages, Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic languages, Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amhara pe ...

Life and career

Bizunesh Bekele was born in 1936. After joining

Kebur Zabagna Kebur Zabagna or Zebenya ( am, ክቡር ዘበኛ, kəbur zãbãňňya, lit=honorable guard) was the Ethiopian imperial guard. Also known as the First Division, this unit served the dual purposes of providing security for the Emperor of Ethiopi ...

Band, by her friend persuasion, she hosted ''Tikil Radio'' entertainment program in 1957, became prominent in the era. In the interview with ''Music, Theatre, Art'', Bizunesh did not released albums by 1969. Bizunesh recorded popular songs in the 1970s such as "Chenk Tibeb" and "Ayasayegn Chinkun". She sometimes performed with the

Gurage The Gurage (, Gurage: ጉራጌ) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group inhabiting Ethiopia.G. W. E. Huntingford, "William A. Shack: The Gurage: a people of the ensete culture" They inhabit the Gurage Zone, a fertile, semi-mountainous region in c ...

singer

Mahmoud Ahmed Mahmoud Ahmed ( Amharic: ማሕሙድ አህመድ; born 8 May 1941) is an Ethiopian singer. He gained great popularity in Ethiopia in the 1970s and among the Ethiopian diaspora in the 1980s, before rising to international fame with African mus ...

Amharic Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all oth ...

. They were both known for appearing with the Imperial Body Guard Band or the Dahlak Banb. She is featured on the recording ''Ethiopian Groove - The Golden Seventies'' (1994,

Buda Musique Buda Musique is a French record label specializing in world music. It was founded in 1987 by Gilles Fruchaux and Dominique Buscall. After Buscall died in 1990, Fruchaux became the sole owner. The label is especially known for its ''Éthiopiques' ...

Artistry

She has been called the " Mariam Makeba of Ethiopia" and the "First Lady of Addis Ababa".

Personal life

Bizunesh first married to Kebur Zabegna member Constable Nuru Wondeafrash, who served in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. Bizunesh was Christian while her husband was Muslim. The second marriage was from Mohammed Endris, a young journalist. In the latter life, Bizunesh suffered from health deterioration with many argued that she had hearing impairment that prevent to perform in the tour of U.S., and inability to sing after brief recovery. She died in 1990 before her second trip in U.S. for her medical follow-up.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bizunesh Bekele 1936 births 1990 deaths 20th-century Ethiopian women singers Amharic-language singers