Radiodiffusion Internasionaal Annexe

♬ Neaki Tebel / ንአኺ ትበል

The Kothari Music Shop was located at 74 Peace St in Asmara, Eritrea. The only reason I know this is because the address is listed on the two singles they produced: K1 by Wendyifraw Weretta and K5 by Berhane Messele.

I am sure you are asking yourself “What about K2, K3 and K4?” I have asked that question to many other collectors of Eritrean music. No one has an answer. There is a record by Ato Abraham Saghid that was co-released with Fikre Records that was catalog number FR2 that may have counted as the second Kothari release. But who knows? And that still leaves K3 and K4 unaccounted for.

As for Berhane Messele / ብርሃነ መሰለ… I have nothing. This was his only recording.

If you have any further information about the artist or Kothari Records, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number K 5 on Kothari Record of Asmara, Eritrea. No release date listed.

A really pretty track…..

Comment by Anonymous February 27, 2022 @ 2:06 am

How do you find such rare beauties?

Comment by The Listening Post Blog February 27, 2022 @ 2:47 am

The funny thing is, I have no recollection of buying this record. It just seemed to magically appear from nowhere…

Comment by Radiodiffusion February 27, 2022 @ 6:45 am

Well, that is a rather fortunate random appearance if ever I heard one! What a little smasher!

Comment by Anonymous February 27, 2022 @ 3:53 pm

Lovely record, we have this in our collection, it is in Tigrinya however our instincts lean towards Tigray/Ethiopia…just a gut feeling, nothing conclusive.

Comment by Eritrean Anthology April 24, 2023 @ 12:28 pm

P.S. If we follow your logic, we may have solved the puzzle for K3 and K4:

Based on Kothari being the distributor,

K2: Osman Abdulrahim’s Intezifelit Nere / Inte Afkercus Yhamyuni on Fikre / Kothari, 1971

K3: Ato Ateweberhan Seghid – Mekri Shemaghelle / Nebeczayka Afeker (Kothari Fikre Records, 1972)

K4: Girmaye Solomon – Messiluni Neyru / Aytiemun (Axum, MKT6) distributor: Kothari

Comment by Eritrean Anthology April 24, 2023 @ 12:47 pm

My mom is Berhane’s Sister. She always mentions him ever since I can remember. He just disappeared

Comment by Anonymous October 12, 2023 @ 11:44 am