Lubak Acoustic
on that for a living. Especially given the expenses of instruments, spaces, transportation
and promotion, bands like Lubak and Akebulans incur expenses. So how much money do
these live bands actually make? “It depends.
In the worst-case scenario we might get 0-2000
Birr each, but on average we usually get a
monthly wage of about 10,000-16,000 Birr as
a whole.” Carlo continues, “But since we’re
a tax-registered band our primary expense is
paying the government. Other than that, we
have sound system expenses, music-related
expenses (when we decide to buy a new instrument or join a course), and promotional
expenses (business cards, trials, etc.) That
amounts to about 25%-50% of our monthly income.”
faced by a band, because it drains out the life
behind the music. And without synergy, the music is simply soulless.” says Carlo. However, they
have learned to somehow manage all that and
come out better and stronger with their passion
and love being the first mediator.
As for Lubaks, they say that it all depends on
where they perform and it is hard to have a
constant figure. “We get around 6,000 to 8,000
Birr from one club. But like I said, it all depends
on the place. One of our constant expenses is
practice space. We spend 1,005 Birr per week
which adds up to be 4,020 Birr per month,” Matias says.
The biggest challenge The Akebulans encountered so far is conflict without resolution. “It is
the single, most challenging issue that can be
The ultimate goal of the Lubaks is to be an internationally known Ethiopian band playing
and promoting the colorful Ethiopian music
and keeping it original. They would also like to
play music on big stages and be recognised as
one of the best bands that everyone around
the world recognises. “The band has managed
to grow in many ways, musical and otherwise.
Through time we want to teach, and touch the
world through our love for one another and our
passion for music,” Carlo concluded.
Lubaks also share the same challenge “The biggest challenge for us is to manage and tolerate
different personalities of the band members.
You grow so close like a family and we all show
our true colors eventually. It is not a bad thing
but it’s quite hard.” says Matias.
The Future