Awalom completed Desdes in 2007, not long before he departed Eritrea.
Because Awalom left after the recording he never received any money for
cassette and CD sales. But he also didn't get to find out how much of an impact
the songs have had locally.
His songs appear to focus on love, but Awalom isn't speaking about romantic
love per se. Love of country and pride in the struggle for independence are
what helps makes songs like these popular among listeners locally and in the
large worldwide Eritrean diaspora. While we don't have many details about the
popularity of the tape in Asmara, the strength of Awalom's sentiment was
enough to carry the recording
