Ethiopia’s Henok and the Mehari Brothers honoured at AFRIMA
09 Nov 2016 - 07:03
Ethiopian band Henok and Mehari Brothers was named Best R&B and Soul Artist for the single ‘Ewedishalehu’ at the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) held on 7 November in Nigeria.
The band was the sole winner from Ethiopia at the awards that saw fellow East African star Diamond Platinumz walk away as the night’s biggest winner having bagged three awards.
Reveling in the moment Henok, the band’s vocalist took to Facebook to share the good news: “Thank God Almighty, I believed in Africa and Africa believed in me, congratulations Ethiopia I have won the AFRIMA awards 2016 Best RnB soul. At last the hard work paid off!”
‘Ewedishalehu’ is a single from the band’s latest album 790 released in early 2016. The 15-track album, has been regarded by fans as offering a "very new and fresh sound" on the Ethiopian music scene. 'Ewèdishalèhu’ is one of the two songs off the album that are getting onto local radio charts.
The Mehari Brothers started off backing artists like Zeritu Kebede. They have also worked with other leading Ethiopian acts, including Teddy Afro, Johnny Ragga and Eyob Mekonnen. Before the Mehari Brothers emerged on the Ethiopian scene, singers usually received the most attention at live shows, with bands relegated to a back-up role.
Speaking to Music In Africa on the sidelines of his participation at the Coke Studio Africa in Kenya, Henok noted that the Mehari Brothers started the band culture in Ethiopia thus making it possible for bands to gain prominence on the live music circuit.
Besides Henok & Mehari Brothers, other Ethiopian stars who were nominated at AFRIMA included: Jano Band who were nominated for the Best Group in African Rock and Best African Group. Also nominated was the fast rising reggae artist Anteneh Minalu for the Best Artist in reggae, ragga and dancehall.
AFRIMA is a combined effort to recognise, award, promote and preserve Africa’s rich music culture. Henok and Mehari Brothers are among the seven bands set to perform during the Music In Africa Foundation (MIAF) Annual General Meeting that kicks off on Thursday, 10 November at the Goethe-Institut in Addis Ababa.
The full programme for the MIAF AGM is available here.
Most popular
Call For Applications : ACCES seeks a UK-based performer
10 Sep 2026
Top amapiano songs of 2026
16 Feb 2026
Top Afrobeats songs of 2026
19 Mar 2026
Open call: FAME Week Africa, Pressure Cooker Studios songwriting camp
09 Sep 2026
Open call: Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation 2026 funding programmes
04 Sep 2026
Open call: Goethe-Institut grants for Southern African creatives
08 Sep 2026
AFRIMA 2026: All the winners
12 Jan 2026
Disclaimer: Music In Africa provides a platform for musicians and contributors to embed music and videos solely for promotional purposes. If any track or video embedded on this platform violates any copyrights please inform us immediately and we will take it down. Please read our Terms of Use for more.
Please log in to post a comment.