Hailu Mergia

Valkhof Festival is a musical journey of discovery and that can also mean that as a visitor you get to know an artist who has been a key figure in his scene for decades, but is in fact still breaking through here. No better example than Hailu Mergia from Ethiopia. Although in this case we are talking about a very great artist. Mergia is none other than the spiritual father of the rich Ethiopian funk scene. A virtuoso on the keyboard and a star in a country of more than 100 million inhabitants.

It took a while before Mergia would find his way (back) to the podium. After successes in the 1970s, he worked for years as a taxi driver, among other things, after moving to the US and was rediscovered earlier by accident. Recently, he has also received the recognition he deserves outside his native country, which has led to several world tours. We are therefore honored to receive him at Valkhof Festival.