In 2018, The HabeshAmericans — the duo of Ahbee C and I, Zander, an American — put out their debut project 13 Months of Sunshine to extremely local fanfare in the Twin Cities, Minnesota area.
That shit was never going to blow up, but there was a lot to be proud of.
The work ethic was admirable — including songwriting sessions over the phone and several flights from Arizona where I lived with my then-girlfriend (now wife) back to Minneapolis to record with Ahbee C. I maxed out my only credit card to get the eight tracks mixed for about $400. But the mic was hot during our sessions (of course we didn’t notice, we could barely get the mic stand balanced), so engineers could only do so much without actually being the ones recording us amateurs.
During this fun and chaotic time, we also achieved what we believe to be a hip-hop first: bundling a book with an album.
While the 13 Months of Sunshine album got an encouraging amount of attention, it wasn’t until years later that our self-published 13MOS book had a couple of random quotes floating around the internet. The book — written to further elaborate on the themes of optimism, self-determination, and growth in the album — managed to resonate with some people despite virtually no copies of the book actually being sold.
Random webpages like this one and this one picked up some of the more digestible quotes and made some feel-good listicle content. Some went even further and made some of those motivational quote visuals like the one below:
All of that being said, there was some magic captured in that project. Some genuinely engaging melodies, a snapshot of a great friendship, and an interesting theme pulling from our shared Habesha culture (primarily Tegaru and Amhara people) and young adult experiences in the United States.
What “13 Months of Sunshine” Means To Us And Habesha People
“13 Months of Sunshine” was the official slogan of Ethiopia’s national tourism efforts from 1961 until 2016 when the Ethiopian Tourism Organization (ETO) introduced the current slogan “Land of Origins.” Ethiopia went through a lot in the lifespan of this slogan, including revolution, Eritrean secession, and a number of self-inflicted humanitarian crises such as the famine that inspired the anthem “We Are The World.”
The 13 months are in reference to the Ethiopian calendar, a unique feature of Habesha culture with twelve 30-day months and one five-day month. It is similar to but distinct from more common Christian calendars such as the Gregorian and Julian, representing the self-determination of Habesha people.
The custom calendar format is paired with the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian belief that the birth of Jesus Christ happened around 7-8 B.C. instead of, well…1? This means as of this piece’s publication, Ethiopia considers itself to be in the year 2017.
There is a fierce pride and optimism about Habesha people. Consciously or not, it defined me and Abeye’s friendship and guided us in the songwriting process for the 13 Months album.
We have complicated dynamics back home, but Abeye and I have overwhelmingly experienced love and camaraderie among fellow Ethiopians and Eritreans in the diaspora. We root for Abel, Alexander Isak, Nipsey Hussle, Rubi Rose, Berhana, Master Tesfatsion, and all of our brothers and sisters doing their best to be their unique selves while repping us all.
Almost seven years later with Aminé dropping his much bigger 13 Months of Sunshine project, enjoy this quick Q & A between Abeye and I in celebration of our own art and anticipation for our distant cousin’s latest work.
Our Favorite Tracks on 13 Months of Sunshine (HabeshAmericans version)
Zander’s Pick
“Sunset” with “Say So” a close second.
Ahbee C’s Pick
Honestly it’s a three-way tie between “Island”, “Say So”, and “Get Up”.
Favorite HabeshAmericans Song Ever
Ahbee C’s Pick
“HabeshAmerican” – an unmixed-unmastered single we dropped. It didn’t make it onto 13 Months of Sunshine but it felt like the perfect introductory track for Zander and me.
Zander’s Pick
“Sustenance (Kool-Aid)” off of Blended Buna. It’s immediately enjoyable and it is one of the only songs of ours I don’t find myself criticizing when I revisit it.
Our Favorite Vocal Parts From Each Other on our 13 Months of Sunshine
Ahbee C’s Favorite Lines From Zander
Our last song, “Sunset”, on the album felt like our own artistic coming of age story and Zander perfectly embodied it in the first few seconds of the song:
“I aint did enough, but I aint gettin upset /
Get a lil better everyday, and everyday got a sunset”
Appreciate the daily small wins in whatever you’re working to accomplish!
Zander’s Favorite Lines From Ahbee C
“‘Cause the hoes know it’s me *sparkle emoji*” Abeye has always had crazy on-mic rizz.
Favorite Moment/Story From 13 Months of Sunshine Sessions
Zander’s Pick
The A-Mill Artist Loft studio was never not a good time. Shoutout to Johnny for the access and early support. We were very excited after Abeye recorded the hook for “Island.” I also have video of us playing back “Sustenance” after it was recorded.
My favorite moment though? The day-long recording session with peak-dreadhead Abeye and a 1.5L chardonnay bottle. Nothing went wrong that day. It felt like an uninterrupted livestream, we spent so much time but it went kinda fast because it was so fun.
Ahbee C’s Pick
Bro this is my fav story too LOL so can we put it for both of us? I would also add how I loved when we had group recording sessions where the guys were with us in the studio sometimes. Felt fun and collaborative.
Our Favorite Habesha Foods
Zander’s Pick
I have a special place in my heart for “dabo fir fir” — a fir fir variation my parents made with Country Hearth 12-grain bread slices. More traditionally, keye wut, direk tibs, ga’at (or ginfo for the Amharic speakers). Gomen is a great side.
Ahbee C’s Pick
Easy. Kitfo. It’s top 2 and not 2!
Favorite Habesha Artist?
Zander’s Pick
I listen to The Weeknd more consistently than any other Habesha artist and have admired his trajectory. He gets my vote, hard not to stick with someone you supported before you even know what they looked like! That being said, two of my favorite songs by Habesha artists are “Atse Yohannes” by Tamrat Amare and “Mela Beyign” by Temesgen Gebregziabher for very different reasons.
“Atse Yohannes” has really beautiful krar work and retells crucial history about one of our most important leaders (whom the song is named after). Hearing the krar makes me emotional, it gives me the clearest feeling of connection to my family tree.
“Mela Beyign” is very fun to dance to and the eskista choreo is next level. I’m still looking for opportunities to work eskista into my music videos and I regularly envision some of the moves in “Mela.”
Ahbee C’s Pick
For me, can’t go wrong with Teddy Afro and The Weeknd.
I have core memories growing up when my mom would play Teddy’s music on car rides or at the crib on Saturday mornings.
The Weeknd has the craziest artist arc that i’ve ever seen. From an anonymous identity to a global superstar. I love how he takes on a new persona for each album and to this day he has some of the most classic R&B mixtapes
Favorite Aminé Songs To Date?
Ahbee C’s Picks
Might sound cliche but definitely “Caroline”! Love how catchy the song is and how simple the music video is. It’s really just homies hanging out on some regular shit having a good time. And more than all that, this was the first commercially successful Habesha hip hop song I believe, so the song feels more impactful.
Zander’s Picks
“Sundays” was an early favorite. Good For You is basically the sound of our 13 Months of Sunshine, about half the album is specifically Aminé type beats. I also really like his collaborations with Injury Reserve, particularly “Campfire” and “Fetus.”
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New music from The HabeshAmericans?! We’ll let you know. In the meantime, pre-order Aminé’s 13 Months of Sunshine here and stream The HabeshAmericans 13MOS and Blended Buna via your platform of choice.