Ester Rada
| Ester Rada אסתר רדא |
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|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ester Rada |
| Born |
March 7, 1985 Kiryat Arba, Israel |
| Genres | Soul, Nu-Soul, Funk, Ethio-Jazz, Groove, R&B |
| Occupation(s) | Singer–songwriter, actress |
| Labels | Harmonia Mundi |
| Associated acts |
Ayala Ingedashet Cabra Casay Malka Ingedashet Mulatu Astatke |
| Website | Ester Rada |
Ester Rada is an Israeli actress and singer of Beta Israel origin.
Rada was born in Kiryat Arba, to a religious family of Ethiopian Jews. Her parents, originally from a village near Gondar, arrived to Israel from a refugee camp in Sudan during Operation Moses, in 1984.
She grew up speaking Amharic at home and Hebrew in school. Her father was known as a cantor in the Ethiopian community in Kiryat Arba. Her parents divorced when she was a child and later on, she moved with her mother and older brother to Netanya in 1996, when Rada was 11 years old, which she considers a turning point in her life, since the family moved to a less observant neighbourhood where the majority were Ethiopian Jews, and also started to interact with French olim, which were familiar with funk and rap, something unheard of in a religious Jewish settlement like Kiryat Arba.
She is currently working on her second album, after releasing her acclaimed first self-written and composed solo EP "Life Happens", which was produced by Israeli producers Kuti (Kutiman/Thru-You) and Sabbo (Soulico), at the beginning of 2013, as well as her first full album, Ester Rada, in 2014.
Rada started her acting career in musical theater, and won an award for her role in Habima Theatre's The Troupe. In 2007, she played a major role in the TV serial "Deus". In the same year she also acted in Habima's play Sdakim beBeton. Her music career started during her military service in the Israel Defense Forces, where she sang Israeli pop songs for an IDF band.
After the release of her EP, she started to gain worldwide popularity on a tour across Europe, the United States, and Canada. She recently performed at the Glastonbury Festival and was the opening act of Alicia Keys' concert in Israel. Her music video "Life Happens" has been broadcast on MTV France, East Europe, and Israel, as well as on VH1 UK. Rada credits Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, and Aretha Franklin as her musical influences, alongside Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill,Jill Scott, traditional religious Bnei Akiva songs and Ethiopian Jazz, especially Mulatu Astatke and Mahmoud Ahmed
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