Fendika

Fendika
Fendika members Melaku Belay and Zenash Tsegaye in 2009
Background information
Also known as	Fendika Azmati Bet
Origin	Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Genres	Ethiopian music
Years active	2009–present
Labels	Terp Records
Associated acts	Ethiocolor Cultural Band Debo Band The Ex

Fendika is an Ethiopian music group based in Addis Ababa. Led by dancer/choreographer Melaku Belay, they operate a venue, tour, record, and perform under the name Fendika.

Born in 1980 in Ethiopia, Melaku Belay lived as an orphan on the streets of Addis Ababa. As a child he taught himself to dance through participation in folk traditions and religious festivals. He worked for seven years as a dancer for tips in Addis Ababa's Kazanchis neighborhood at a local azmari bet—a tavern that hosts azmari story-songsters who accompany themselves on the masenko or krar. Each night after work, the young Melaku slept under the bar and eventually saved enough money to buy the club, Fendika Azmari Bet, from its owners.

When not working at the azmari bet, Melaku traveled extensively through Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, and South Sudan to learn as many dances as he could from more than 80 tribes around the Horn of Africa, including the traditions of Gurage, Wolaita, Tigray, Wollo, Konso, Gonder, and Gojam. Melaku also became a nationally celebrated artist in eskesta, a shoulder dance style whose movements share roots with hip hop's traditions of locking and popping.

With Ethiopia's capital city being a nexus of culture, music, and dance from other nations, Melaku incorporated these into his repertoire as well, gradually assembling a 13-piece ensemble called the Ethiocolor Cultural Band. Combining tribal dances and folk instruments with jazz, rock, theater and elaborate costumes. The group became a staple at Fendika, rooted in the azmati tradition but with amplified versions of its instruments. In 2009 Melaku assembled a smaller group out of the larger Ethiocolor ensemble, featuring three musicians, two dancers, and one singer. With a more portable acoustic sound and azmari folk aesthetic, the group named themselves Fendika in tribute to the establishment from which they originated.