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From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Sun Aug 01 2010 - 07:44:58 EDT
"I Got Inspired to Do More and Better,"EriArtist Layne Tadesse
Meron Abraha, Jul 31, 2010
The evening of Wednesday July 21, 2010 saw a huge crowd outside Cinema Roma.
People were pushing and squeezing to get the best seats. Scheduled for that
evening was a concert featuring a group of talents from the US, Europe and
Middle East.
The concert was held in line with the fourth Sawa Youth Festival, one of
whose aims was to gather as many talents as possible from various parts of
the world, known altogether as EriArtists, and foster friendships,
creativity, and ties to their Eritrean roots.
Eritrea-born artist Layne "LT" Tadesse, also known as the Prince of Reggae,
was among the many talents from the Eritrean Diaspora.
I had an opportunity to chat briefly with him a week ago as he prepared to
perform in the closing ceremony of the International Youth Forum at the
Asmara Palace Hotel. Very humble and with an engaging personality, LT shared
with us his enthusiasm with Reggae music.
He was born in Ghinda and lived there until the age of 8 before he moved
with his parents to Europe, and later the US. He now resides in San Diego,
California.
LT's interest in music dates way back to his childhood. Coming from a family
with background in music, young LT was highly influenced. He was
particularly inspired by his elder brother, who also played music.
LT first got into Rap, Hip-Hop and R&B with The Black Fugitives, a group he
was a member of while still a teenager. Together with the group, he
performed in school plays and talent shows.
"I still worked with the group but I at the same time I was also focusing on
my own sound," LT recounts.
Because he used to listen to Reggae songs in his family, he soon recognized
that he was cut out for Reggae. So when he mastered his sound, LT thought he
should start focusing on his own style and shifted to Reggae.
"When it comes to Hip Hop and R&B, at least for me, you have to force
yourself to like it. But Reggae, it's more like world music, which the
majority of the world listens to. Who's not going to like Reggae music?"
Eventually, LT releases his debut album, Rise, with 19 tracks on life
situations, love, hardships, and other social issues. He wrote and composed
all of his songs.
Neghishey, one of the tracks in the album and a song he performed at Cinema
Roma, is dedicated to his mother, who passed away recently. He said he would
record a remix of the song with Tigrigna words in his upcoming album.
"I am planning to send copies to Eritrea so people in my homeland can get to
hear to some of the songs on the radio," LT promised.
LT's remarkable skills of controlling audiences have earned him great praise
from Eritrean audience, making him a hard act to follow. From his a cappella
intro to his electrifying performance on stage, LT brought the house down.
"When I am backstage I feel like I am tired and sleepy but when I get on
stage, it's a 360 degree transformation. And that's just the way music makes
me feel," he said and went on saying that the feedback from the Eritrean
audience was unbelievable.
"When the audience gives you energy, you have to give it back to them. Your
audience can read you really well when you're on stage, so you have to be
able to interact," LT stresses.
Talking about interaction, he said that when he performs in concerts in the
US, he goes up to the stage sporting the Eritrean flag (unlike the
mainstream reggae singers, Rastafari, who wave the Ethiopian flag).
"When I am doing my act, they respect it. At first they would get confused
but I pretty much made them understand that all my delivery is all about
pride and identity. I tell them 'My music is Reggae, I am an Eritrean Rasta,
but not necessarily a Rastafarian'," he said, smile never parting his face.
Back in the US, he's actively involved in the Eritrean community centers
helping the young Eritreans not just with music but education as well.
"There is the Eritrean United, a youth group, which gives workshops and
seminars on being responsible and knowing your culture, heritage and where
you're from. We have for instance about 500 youngsters in the San Diego area
who meet regularly every three months," LT explained.
LT might be a passionate artist but not .fulltime. Carrier wise, he's got a
degree from Chaffey College and he is now into Dental Technology.
"I am always working with people's teeth. I guess I like to make people
smile through my music and my carrier," he humored.
When I asked him about Eritrean music he admitted that we are still sticking
to the same pattern and that "we need to get on it real quick."
"Style of music in the world is evolving very fast and we need to catch up,"
he recommended.
"But generally speaking, it's a promising trend. You have, for instance, the
Kunama beat. Fusing that sound with Tigrigna could be very amazing. It's
something that has never been done," he emphasized.
Talking about his favorite artists, LT disclosed that the late Abraham
Afwerki was one of his favorites and that he always dreamed of working with
Korchah and Wedi Tuqabo. He explained that they could compose a song, leave
his part out and send it to him so he could later fill his part in and send
it back.
This is the first time in 10 years that LT came to visit Eritrea. He came
for a short time but he said it was worth the trip.
"I decided to come because opportunity only comes only once in a lifetime,
and when you take it you have to take it with a bang," he said.
While in Eritrea, LT has been occupied with preparations for the festival
and the subsequent concerts. But he did mention that it was an inspiring
trip.
"For starters I am going to work on some Tigrigna songs and incorporating
Eritrean traditional beats into the tracks in my upcoming album, Reaching
Out. What I am planning is if somebody composed a Kunama track for me, I
could put in my own voice and it could be so refreshing. It was indeed an
extremely inspiring trip," was all the Prince of Reggae said before he
parted.
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