Ethiopian Taxi Driver, Keyboardist Reinvents Music Career

One of the most popular keyboardists in Ethiopia is now a taxi driver here in Washington. In the 1970s, Hailu Mergia performed with a famous band in Ethiopia. In 1981, he toured the United States with that band and then settled in Washington. But he kept his name and music alive in Ethiopian communities worldwide by producing his own recordings. Now one of those cassettes, from nearly 30 years ago, has been reissued after it was discovered in a music store in Ethiopia. VOA’s Deborah Block has the story.