Meklit

Music that sways between cultures and continents, featuring a body of deeply personal Ethio-Jazz songs.

23/24 Hop Presents

Meklit Hadero is an Ethiopian American vocalist, songwriter, composer and cultural activist. Her touring band includes the intimate strums of an Ethiopian krar, the wails of a Jazz saxophone, the multi-tones of a drum kit mixed with the snappy rhythms of a Turkish tupan, the fluttering of pentatonic keyboard melodies, and the backbone of a grooving bassline that just makes you want to dance.

Her lyrics in English and Amharic connect to our shared humanity, reminding us that "everything that we are was made in a supernova."

Meklit's performances have taken her around the world, from Addis Ababa—where she is a full blown star—to San Francisco, NYC, Chicago, Nairobi, Cairo, Montreal, London, Zurich, Rome, Helsinki and many more. Meklit's latest album When the People Move, the Music Moves Too was named amongst the best records of the year by Bandcamp and The Sunday Times UK, climbing to the top of the iTunes, NACC and European World Charts.

Programmed in conjunction with Dartmouth's Black Legacy Month

Funded in part by the Class of 1961 Legacy: The American Tradition in Performance Fund, the Bob Gatzert 1951 Jazz Series Fund for the Hopkins Center, the David H. Hilton 1951 Fund No. 2, a gift from Amy and Henry Nachman. Photo: Petri Anttila

Meklit Hadero is an award-winning Ethiopian American vocalist/composer and former refugee. Her music has been featured by the New York Times, BBC, NPR and more. Meklit is a NatGeoExplorer, TED Sr. Fellow and former Artist-in-Residence at Harvard. She has been commissioned to create music by Lincoln Center, and collaborated with Kronos Quartet, AndrewBird and Preservation Hall Jazz Band. She is host of Movement, a new radio series, podcast and live show exploring the intersection of migration and music, which airs as a nationally syndicated feature on PRX's The World to 2.5 million monthly listeners.

The Hop Presents

Meklit
Saturday, February 3, 8 pm
Rollins Chapel • Dartmouth College • 2024

Programmed in conjunction with Dartmouth’s Black Legacy Month
Funded in part by the Class of 1961 Legacy: The American Tradition in Performance Fund, the Bob Gatzert 1951 Jazz Series Fund for the Hopkins Center, the David H. Hilton 1951 Fund No. 2, a gift from Amy and Henry Nachman.

About the Artist

Meklit Hadero is an Ethiopian American vocalist, songwriter and composer, known for her electric stage presence, innovative sound and vibrant cultural activism. Her Ethio-jazz music has taken her to renowned stages across four continents and her collaborations have stretched from Kronos Quartet to Preservation Hall. Tonight, Meklit celebrates the release of a brand new single from her forthcoming EP Ethio-Blue.

Meklit is co-founder, co-producer and host of Movement, a new podcast, radio series and live show uplifting the stories and songs of immigrant musicians. The show airs monthly on PRX’s The World to an audience of 2.5 million listeners. Meklit is also a National Geographic Explorer, a TED Senior Fellow and a former Artist-in-Residence at Harvard and NYU. She is the co-founder of the Nile Project, a featured voice in UN Women’s theme song and the winner of the 2021 globalFEST Artist Award. Meklit’s work has been featured by the New York Times, BBC, CNN, NPR, Washington Post, Vibe Magazine, San Francisco Chronicle, Boston Globe and many more.

Arts in the Curriculum & Community

As part of the Hop’s tradition of immersing artists in the Dartmouth community to build knowledge and create connections, Meklit will attend a House dinner and a student lunch with the Ethiopian and Eritrean Students Association. She will also visit a school in the Upper Valley area to engage with younger students.

“[Meklit’s] sound is a unique blend of jazz, Ethiopia, the San Francisco art scene and visceral poetry; it paints pictures in your head as you listen.”
NPR