Ali Birra is an Oromo singer, composer, poet and saint. Ali was born on February 29, 1950 in the city of Dirre Dhawaa.
His Childhood Life
Ali was born in Dirre Dhawaa. His parents separated when Ali was three years old. Ali was then raised by his father. As a child, he attended an Arabic school and learned Arabic. He then went to school and is now in 6th grade.
As a child, he supported himself by doing various businesses on the streets. At the age of 13, he joined the Afran Qalloo hawwisoo, which was working underground to promote Oromo culture.
The government of Haile Selassie in 1965 partially imprisoned the Oromo artists.
Ali fled to Finfinne.
His Life in Finfinne
After moving to Finfinne, Ali started doing various musical works. It was during this time that Ali met the patriot Ahimad Taqi. Ahimad Taqi bought a guitar for Ali to sing with. Ali’s popularity grew rapidly in Finland. Ali could sing in Amharic, Arabic, Harari and Somali alongside the Oromo. This made him praised and loved by various people. One of his favorites was Iyyu’el Yohaannis, a former leader of Kibur Zabanyaa. He had Ali join Kibur Zabanya;
While in Kibur Zabanyaa, he had the opportunity to travel to different areas to showcase his skills. He also went to Sudan and sang with famous singers like Mohammed Wardifa. While in Finfinne, he sang on big stages like Hagar Fiqiri and Ras Tiyatrifa. Later he negotiated with his father and left Finland. In the 1970s, when the Ethiopian Revolution began, Ahimad Taqi died fighting government troops in eastern Ethiopia.
Ali continued his career as a singer and composer. He released his first album in 1971, which was the first album in the history of Oromo music.
