Mulatu Astatke

Born in the western Ethiopian city of Jimma and trained in London, New York and Boston, Astatke made an impact early on by combining his jazz and Latin music interests with traditional Ethiopian music.

With his albums focussing primarily on instrumental music, Astatke leads his band while playing vibraphone and conga drums, alongside other percussion instruments, keyboards and organ.

Having collaborated with many notable artists, Astatke has arranged and played on recordings by Mahmoud Ahmed and appeared as a special guest of Duke Ellington's during his 1973 Ethiopia tour. His Western audience expanded further following the release of Jim Jarmusch's 2005 film Broken Flowers which featured many of Astatke’s songs, as well as through the countless sampling of Hip hop artists such as Nas, Damian Marley, Kanye West, Cut Chemist, and Knaan.