Kenny Allen : The road to Ethiopia for me starts in some small clubs and cafe’s in Washington, DC
Kenny Allen, also known as K’Alyn or just K is a talented singer and song writer who plays a range of instruments, and whose music is a fusion of jazzy tones with poetic and insightful lyrics, and elements of folk, funk, R n B and soul music. His music is inspired by Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Wonder and Sting. He has been in Ethiopia for a while now, working on some albums.

by Israel Ribeiro da Sousa (Radio Afrika TV)

How long have been in Ethiopia?
I have been in Ethiopia for 3 1/2 years

During your time here, you have worked with Jony Ragga, are there any other artists or songs that you have worked on?
Most of the works I’ve done with other artists here have been as a producer.  I produced an album for singer Sydney Salmon from Jamaica who lives in Shashemane and produced a single for singer Tsedania which will be on her next release.

How long have you been working on the CD? Is it your first work?
I started working on this album right before I came to Ethiopia and was delighted to stay here and finish it. If I had done the record in America, I’m sure it would have been a different kind of album.  I am very happy to be influenced by Ethiopia and Africa as a whole.  Since I came here, I have been exposed to West African Music and that has opened my mind to new possibilities.
This is the first CD on my new record label, called EARCO (East Africa Recording Company).  I have released three cd’s prior to this in the states and may re-release them in the future in Ethiopia and the rest of Africa.

How many of the songs are your own works (poems and lyrics)?
There are 13 songs on the new album, “the 251″ and twelve songs are original works.  The thirteenth song is a re-make of a Mahmoud Ahmed song.
I arranged, produced and mixed the album myself.

How many of video clips have you done?
I have one video clip so far for a song called “Ethiopia Watch Over Me” which was directed by film-maker/photographer Aida Muluneh and edited by Zeleman Productions.

How was the concert?
I was very happy with the concert last night.  Somehow, probably through prayers from my close friends and supporters, everything went smoothly.  I am grateful for the help of sponsors Ethiopian Airlines, Castel Beer, and Sheraton Addis for making it possible as well as the incredible musicians who performed with me.

Is it the way you expected it to be?
It was exactly as i imagined it in my mind visually, but i could have never predicted the feelings i felt last night from the energy of the people.  It was so supportive and receptive and it made my task of sharing my hard work enjoyable.

Was it your first?
I have been performing at the Harlem Jazz nightclub on Bole Rd. since I came to ethiopia and have done some concerts, but never like this recent show.
I am planning to make a 6 city tour of Ethiopia in September and October as well as a follow up concert in addis after one month.

I have heard you play an Ethiopian song (Guraguegna) on the concert, why did you choose that song?
This song (Belomi Benna by Mahmoud Ahmed) speaks to me musically and melodically and I think because i eat so much kitfo, i am drawn to guragna music.

What is the road to Ethiopia? How did you come to comehere?
The road to Ethiopia for me starts in some small clubs and cafe’s in the U st. area of Washington, DC, where for many years, i performed amongst the Ethiopian Community even when i didn’t know where they were actually from.
When one day, I was playing guitar with recently grammy-nominated singer Wayna at a place called Cada Vez in DC, where the show was promoted by a man named Emmanuel Mekuria who was to open the Harlem Jazz nightclub in Addis Ababa.  He asked Wayna if he knew anyone like me who might be interested in coming to Ethiopia for six months.  She told him, “Why don’t you ask Kenny.”  We met in Busboys and Poets book store on 15th and U ST and I thought to myself, winter is coming, i wouldn’t mind beating the cold, I’ve never been to Africa, and as long as i have a return ticket, why not.”  The rest has been history.

What are your musical aims and ambitions?
My musical aims and ambitions are to continue to grow and absorb the inspirations of Africa and blend that with the sounds and inspirations I have acquired from my own african-american experience to create a new niche of world music.  It is to become an ambassador for East Africa to the west, specifically Ethiopia musically and culturally.  
My dream as a musician is to be able to see the whole world through music.  Performing, producing albums of myself and others, signing some artists to my newly started record label, “EARCO” (East Africa Music Company), and establishing myself as an International music artist.
I would like to be here in Ethiopia 6 months out of the year, writing and recording, and touring the rest of the world the other 6 months.

Is Ethiopia surprising?
Yes, in many ways.  Some are good, some are not so cool.
On the not so cool tip, every morning, I wake up, and look for two little red lights on the speakers of my studio to see if today is my day to have power.  Lately, I am rarely surprised to find them on.
On the good, because I am inspired by beauty, and because Ethiopia is a mix of Africa and Arabia, the range of beautiful people is such that you can see a next amazing combination every day that you’ve never seen before. In short, the presence of such beauty is soothing to me on a daily walk. If only just to see.
I have also been surprised by great ideas coming up in Addis. People are opening new businesses, buildings, cafes.  The blend of the west and ET is proving to be amazing. But Ethiopia is not only Addis Ababa.  Have recently visited the historic city of Bahr Dar and fell in love with the lake and the town.  

What is the best things you have found in Ethiopia?
The best things i have found in Ethiopia have been most impactful internally.  These things are patience, humility, and a new global perspective.  From everyday life, the highs and lows, the extreme palette of the unrespectable, the contrasts that you see in this country, force an outsider like myself to reflect and sort out in my mind the answer to an age old question,” what really matters in life.”

How has Ethiopia fed your musical development and how have you contributed to local musicians and development?
Through my time here in Ethiopia, I have become more aware of the idea of melody through Ethiopian music, and have been exposed to music from west Africa of which i have fallen in love with.  The vocal phrasings, the beats, and the spirit of world music have encouraged me to reach for higher heights, to seek out the hearts of a wider audience that i may not have even remotely been able to invasion before. I think i have brought my own Washington, DC/ african-american sense of groove to the music scene here, and I believe that it is “the groove,” not only my groove, but a stronger rhythmic pulse that is necessary to take Ethiopian music to the world music scene. More feeling in the music, that comes from getting back to live band in studio, less of the one keyboard hits.  Expanding the mindsets of the people in art, sets the tone for expanding the mindset of the people in agriculture, business, and is the essence of the so-called renaissance movement in Ethiopia. 

How do you get the inspiration to write great songs?
Deep emotions and universal stories, simple melodies that resonate.  Combining textures and sounds, by not trying to make a great song, but just making a great song.
i never “try” to write a hit song.  I am just trying to express my feelings with hopes that i can put a feeling into music and or words and hope that others hear and feel the joy or pain.  The hope or need for help.

What are your plans for distributing the album and promotional tours, locally and internationally?
Locally, i am taking a very grassroots approach to the distribution, hand to hand, mostly at the shows.  Internationally, I will make the cd available on websites like iTunes and CD Baby with hopes to create the momentum needed to tour the world.  If a major distribution company or record label is able to see my vision of the music as it is and should be interested in doing business with me to reach an even bigger audience i would strongly consider working with them. 

That was an interview with the multitalented Kenny Allen. Look out for the Album “251″ and enjoy his groovy tones.