“Musica kab Libe”: Music from the Heart

The themes of time, space, and belonging can oftentimes be encapsulated through mediums of art, especially music. Historically, music has served as a means of expression of feelings and surroundings. This is especially true throughout the history of Eritrean music as Eritrean music has served as a great representation of the people and their experiences. Music has covered everything from Italian colonialism, the liberation struggle from Ethiopian rule, and the refugee crisis today. 

From the 1960s to the 1980s, singer Yemane Barya sung about the war for Independence and Eritrea as a free nation. In his song “Delay Selam”, he talks about the oppression that has occurred at the hands of the Ethiopian regime but advises people to maintain peace with the different religious and ethnic groups of the country. He states “Arikebinyu selam megzahti keterfi (1:00),” emphasizing that there will be no peace until the colonizers leave, thus urging for peace on the land that the enemy will try to divide. The symbol of land is further mentioned in his song “Meriruna Sidet,” a song that highlights the struggle of leaving one’s country due to war. Barya speaks on the importance of land as the heart one’a nation, while also explaining the hardships that come with leaving one’s home and having to assimilate elsewhere. His lyrics read “Tigrum hewit ab metsertu, Hewit minbaru, minbar ab geza. Anewen meseliey (2:20-2:40),” which states that the purpose of life is to be able to live freely in your homeland. Barya also explains a particular combination of sadness and frustration that comes with the ultimate bondage of one’s self to their land and subsequently having to continuously fight to be free. 

While the events that Barya speaks about mostly occurred in the middle to the latter quarter of the 20th century, the liberation struggle continued for decades after, even after the 1991 victory for Independence. In her song, “Warsay”, which means the next generation, Helen Meles is reflecting on the history of the war, especially in regards to the battles that emerged in May of 1998. As a former soldier herself, she speaks on the betrayal that Eritreans felt from the Ethiopian army post Independence. The Eritrean army helped Ethiopia overthrow Derg, the leader of Ethiopia and the communist party from 1974 to 1987, by aiding their military. Meles sings to the crowd of the young Eritrean soldiers, trying to build morale and give hope while also reminding them that the fight for the homeland is the ultimate fight. She continuously repeats “Who are these people,” referring to the Ethiopian soldiers who has now occupied the disputed land that rightfully belonged to Eritrea. She then goes on to say that “they are acting like they’re strangers to Eritrea (2:05)”, even when they fought side by side for a united cause. Similar to Barya, Meles’ song is centered on the struggle for sovereignty, thus showing an ongoing fight.

The theme of struggle mentioned by Barya and Meles is prevalent in the singer’s Abraham Afewerki song “Fishikta Ameley”. “Fishikta Ameley,” can be loosely translated to “smiling is my personality” and is a song that is meant to invoke hope. In his song, Afewerki sings about smiling throughout life in times of good and bad, singing “Fshikta ameley, kuku tserey, betam hitseb, ayheleney” repeatedly in the chorus. While he doesn’t explicitly mention anything political, many have interpreted his lyrics as a criticism of the government for not doing more for the country. Although he’s urging his people to smile through the rough times, the reason why there are these unfortunate times is because the government has ultimately failed to provide for the people, thus leading to worsened living standards and conditions. Afewerki even uses language that refers to war, when he sings “Yetserhi alowu bi akemey kelsey nay kedemi (3:16),” claiming that he’s trying to fight an ongoing fight that has started years prior. Thus, referring back to the war of independence and suggesting that the fight for true independence is still occurring.

The notion of independence today presents an interesting dichotomy between patriotism, but also a feeling of resentment for unfulfilled promises and the human rights violations that plague the nation. There are songs like “Yegermena,” that invoke a feeling of pride in one’s people and the nation. In the video, artist, Wedi Tikabo, is singing to a stadium filled with people and political leaders on the 20th celebration of Independence day. In his song, Wedi Tikabo often refers to a successful liberation, which is something that is continuously mentioned in patriotic anthems as the win for freedom stands as the main pillar for patriotism. Ironically, years later, once he escaped from Eritrea, Wedi Tikabo released a song called “Hadnetna,” which translates those to who have fled or refugees. Wedi Tikabo speaks about the mass refugee crisis that has occurred in the last ten years and is blaming the government for prompting this. The idea of fleeing that Wedi Tikabo mentions were mentioned tens of years ago by Yemane Barya, thus highlighting how although the form of struggle has changed over the years, the fight persists. 

Besides the current refugee crisis, many singers have also sung about the new peace agreement between Eritrea and Ethiopia. However, years before the peace agreement took place in 2018, Riesome Gebregeorgis sung “Selam,” which was a call for peace between the two nations. Gebregeorgis sings this song in both Tigrinya and Amharic as a means to spread the message to both countries. He sings “Kab addis abbab na asmera selam (1:46),” calling for both peace between both groups, which also extends to different tribes and religious groups within these two nations. He urges people to live in peace like old times and that there’s no point in the war. Gebregeorgis also pays particular attention to the border, when he sings in 4:35- 5:09. He calls for open borders and having the ability to go from one tribe in Eritrea to another in Ethiopia and back down to Massawa, the largest coastal city in Eritrea. Through this description, he is suggesting a shared cultural exchange and thus, an understanding between the two people, something that greatly juxtaposes previously mentioned songs that were centered on fighting. 

Whether the songs mentioned fighting for one’s country or served as a form of political dissent, music has been a medium that reflects one’s life. Through the music of people such as Helen Meles and Abraham Afewerki, we can see how music is a reflection of the makeup of the world in that very place and time. It captures the screams of liberation and pain, the happiness of love and the brutality of hate, and embodies a people that have withstood so much. Thus, the music serves as a representation of our history and it’s because of that importance that people of the diaspora resonate with the music so much. It reminds them of their people, their land, and most importantly their home.

By: Feven Yohannes

A historic photo showcasing traditional Eritrean instruments