3 Questions with The Chachi

accountant by day, DJ by night

3 Questions is a new segment on Urban Chronicles where you get to meet the people in no more than three questions. Some of them will be creatives with several projects under their belt, some will be aspiring visionaries who hope to change the world and some will be people we encounter in our daily lives.

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1. How did you get the name The Chachi?

This is a funny story.

I was looking for a unique name that resonates with the good old 90’s. Back then my preferred genre to perform was funky disco and dark disco, which I believed reflects and brings back old childhood memories infused with strong techno elements, a mixture of the past and the present. Then I remembered a specific mascot that used to be featured on ETV. It was an old sensation and many remember it, so it felt like a fit for what I wanted to achieve.

The problem emerged as I wasn’t sure what the name of that mascot was. So my mind suggested that it might be Chachi. After I made my first few appearances, I learned what I was aiming to land on was actually Cherry.

As time goes on, I am learning that Chachi has its own different mission for me and since then, I’ve drifted from my ambitions of playing disco to more Afrotech. Now I am mainly focusing on Kuduro based Afrotech.

2. I understand you’re an accountant by day and a DJ by night. How did that happen?

They are my two lovers from different edges of the spectrum. I believe I was born to appreciate and live art while always reconciling the costs!

I’ve been a bookkeeper for my mom since I learned to read. When we went shopping, I helped mom reconcile payments with items she purchased. I was like her moving calculator. I even took the blame when what we had in cash didn’t match what we bought so I’ve lived on accounting and corporate shenanigans for ages. Then I did very well in college where most people thought I was wasting my time by pursuing accounting while having dreadlocks, pertaining to the stigma that an accountant should always resemble the standards of white collar. I kept on being different while achieving great things and joined the world of work where my fondness for DJing house music laid its foundation.

A friend had told me about an event called Zoya. My first event was not a concert. We pre-gamed really well and headed to Greek Club where the event was held, to witness one of the most spectacular times of my life. Beka, I wanted to be there on the stage. I wanted to headline there. I liked how people enjoyed themselves and how happy they truly were. That got sharpened, fine-tuned and projected into what I am right now; numbers dealer by the sun and a music merchant by the moon.

3. What’s the House music scene like in Addis from your perspective?

It’s growing very quickly. The mission is to shift the music taste of this generation. House music is not just dance music, it’s media that integrates the unique culture and essence of a specific area to the general language many understand. House music here [in Addis] is yet to grow but it’s clear to see the effects now as more producers are emerging and the demand for House DJs is growing in commercial events. It’s not a mythical expectation to see Ethiopia become a hub for big House music events in the next few years.

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You can catch The Chachi live at his next show in Addis one of these weekends. Keep an eye out for him.