Nhatty Man & Gara
A household name in Ethiopia and around the worldwide Diaspora, Nhatty Man and his 5 piece band Gara are emerging as one of the most energetic acts to hit Australian stages. Nhatty was nominated at the first East African Music Awards, where he performed alongside Congolese legend Papa Wemba, Burundian star Kidum and Kenyan pop singer Jaguar. He was the first Horn of Africa artist to perform on Big Brother Amplified in South Africa, which was broadcast across the continent. Since relocating to Melbourne Nhatty has enchanted the crowd with his energetic performance at WOMADelaide, Port Fairy Folk Festival, New Years Eve at Fed Square, collaborated with new sounds and rhythms from Colombia to Mauricious and released Selam, an EP combining Ethiopian roots and reggae with conscious lyrics in Amharic and English.
The Band
YOS HAILE
//Production
//Bass, Synths & Keys
ZELALEM NEGATU
//Drum Kit
LUKE KOZANSKI
//Guitar
SOLOMAN SISAY
//Tenor Saxophone
Gara, meaning hill in Amharic (Ethiopia's national language), are a four piece ensemble, made up of accomplished musicians from Melbourne's Ethiopian and Jazz communities. Recognised in their homeland as master musicians, Yos Haile, Soloman Sisay and Zelalem Negatu have performed and toured with Ethiopian legends Mahmoud Ahmed, Aster Aweke and Alemayhu Eshete. Combining forces with guitar protegee Luke Kozanski, the musicians interweave their instinctual Ethio-scales with reggae, dancehall and traditional Ethiopian rhythms.
DANIEL SEIFU
//Keyboard