ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — Beyonce Knowles joined the millennium celebrations in Ethiopia with a spirited concert in the capital of the Horn of Africa nation.
Some 5,000 adoring fans in Ethiopia -- a country normally unimpressed by Western music -- turned out to see Beyonce. In this country, even teens tend to be loyal to music in the national language, Amharic. But Beyonce got a hysterical welcome when she came onstage.
"I want to thank you," the R&B star told the screaming crowd Saturday evening in return. "You have been one of the best audiences of my lifetime."
In a country where many women wear simple white, cotton dresses, Beyonce wore costumes covered in sequins or shiny, space-age material, from a modern interpretation of a hula girl with shiny black tendrils replacing the grass skirt to a high-necked Victorian-style top paired with sequined hot pants.
Beyonce's concert was part of Ethiopia's yearlong celebration of its 2,000th birthday according to its ancient calendar.
In September, at the start of the year 2000, Addis Ababa hosted Los Angeles-based hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas in a new, multimillion-dollar but temporary concert hall. But the reception for the internationally popular group was tepid, if respectful.
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