Against The Clock: Mikael Seifu

Against The Clock is a series where we give an artist 10 minutes in the studio and see what they come up with.

Born and raised in Addis Ababa, Mikael Seifu is one of several producers from the Ethiopian capital creating “Ethiopiyawi Electronic”, a style that draws on the country’s rich musical history, from the music of nomadic folk musicians known as azmaris to the Ethiopian jazz of the 1960s and ’70s.

On this episode of Against The Clock, we met up with Seifu at his studio in Addis Ababa, where he showed us some of the techniques that have gone into creating his music, which has appeared on Washington D.C.’s 1432R label and on RVNG Intl over the years.

Listen to the finished track below and find Seifu’s music at Bandcamp.

Filmed by Mia Zur-Szpiro