Mulatu Astatke

Overview

Mulatu Astatke was born in Jimma, Ethiopia, and, after studying music in London, New York City and Boston, created a new music style by blending traditional Ethiopian rhythms with Latin and jazz. Soon after, he came to be known as the 'Father of Ethio-Jazz'. Stardom in Africa followed, but it wasn't until Astatke appeared on the soundtrack for Jim Jarmusch's Broken Flowers that he became a big name in the West.

At The Basement, he'll be joining forces with nine-piece funk band The Black Jesus Experience, who he met in Addis Ababa in 2009. Their collaborative album, Cradle Of Humanity, is due out in June.