Is Wedi Tikabo Eritrea's Version of the Dixie Chicks?

Struggling singer Wedi Tikabo (the man with the flowers) befriends convicted criminals in a bid to stay relevant. The overweight man second from the far left is Solomon Assefaw, who is the wring leader off a violent Ethiopian-backed criminal organization. Solomon, including the thin-faced man on the far right, Bemnet Mesfen, and the man without a hat in the far back,  Fitsum Arefaine, are the three men who were convicted of vandalizing the Eritrean Community Culture Civic Center in Oakland. These criminals are now Wedi Tikabo's friends and business partners.

Is Wedi Tikabo Eritrea's Version of the Dixie Chicks?


On March 10th, 2003, Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks stood in front of a crowd at Shepherd’s Bush Empire Theatre in London, and uttered these now infamous words:

“Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas.”

The comments, which were made 10 days before the beginning of the Iraq War, resulted in one of the biggest boycotts in the history of American music. The backlash took the Dixie Chicks from the biggest concert draw in country music to relative obscurity in a matter of weeks.

In making the comments, the Dixie Chicks forgot who their core fans were. The country music scene is filled with patriotic Americans who are proud of their country and troops. Wrong or right, their fans felt the Dixie Chicks betrayed their country at a time when they needed to rally around the flag.

Like the Dixie Chicks, Yohannes "Wedi" Tikabo seems to have forgotten who his core fans are, too. After completing the Hade Libna USA Tour last summer with fellow musicians Dawit Shilan, Zeineb Beshir and Melekin Atombes, Yohannes decided he needed to extend his time in America by claiming asylum, while his compatriots went back home in disbelief of his selfish behavior.

Months later, Yohannes disappointed his former fans again after giving an interview with Amanuel Iyassu, a highly controversial person who works closely with the Ethiopian regime. During his interview, he gave long-winded answers to simple questions that left people puzzled as what to make of his ramblings.

Despite Yohannes giving the interview with Amanuel, many Eritreans still felt he wasn't genuine with his new found grievances, and that he was putting on a show to get his asylum papers approved. Other Eritreans who claimed asylum before him, including most of the Eritrean soccer players who defected a few years ago, ended up to be staunch government supporters once their papers were approved in the West. However, Yohannes has shown his objectives are far more sinister than just gaming the immigration system.

On Friday, Yohannes was spotted in the Bay Area with convicted criminals Solomon Assefaw, Fitsum A. Ghebreegziabher aka Fitsum Arefaine, and Bemnet Mesfen, who were all found guilty in a California Superior Court for vandalizing the Eritrean Community Cultural Civic Center  in Oakland.

Video of Solomon, Fitsum and Bemnet vandalizing ECCCC in Oakland, California:



If the old adage of 'show me your friends and I will show you your future' still holds true, then Yohannes is destined to be like the criminals he is surrounding himself with. Whether we like to acknowledged it or not, our friends have a strong influence on the type of people we become, and Yohannes will not be the exception to this rule.

In contrast to the reaction of American fans of the Dixie Chicks, Eritrean fans have largely been indifferent to Yohannes' 15 seconds of 'me time'. Most Eritreans have been very respectful to a man that is now openly working with people that have physically and financially harmed their countrymen. But there is one area the Eritrean diaspora and American country music fans share the same approach and that's through the power of boycott.

For fans, there is nothing more effective in showing their disdain towards a musician than boycotting them and their work. Even for the most arrogant divas who live on cloud nine, a boycott of their music will bring them down to earth faster than gravity. Ultimately, this is the price Yohannes will pay for sleeping in bed with sworn enemies of the Eritrean people. The change he naively thinks he can bring by singing in dusty bar rooms for middle aged criminals will not come to Eritrea but to to his wallet.

While it is true that the Yohannes is the furthest thing from the Dixie Chicks in terms of music genres and styles, his career will take a similar path. Not only will Yohannes' career fade into obscurity but he himself will become a social pariah among the Eritrean diaspora. When you betray the people that help you become who you are, you are ultimately betraying yourself.

Peace!

Related Reading: Eritrean opposition groups turn to violence to stay visible

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