She has performed the music of Ethiopia in combination with a wide variety of other genres, often in collaboration with her former husband Bill Laswell, a bassist and producer.
She was noticed by Palm Pictures owner Chris Blackwell, who had years earlier introduced reggae to the mainstream through his former label, Island Records.
The album was a critical success internationally and generated controversy in her home country for such a radical break with Ethiopian popular music.
Bill Laswell played guitar and keyboard (instead of his usual bass), and several of Gigi's family members contributed vocals.
Gigi's voice can be heard in the Hollywood film Beyond Borders (2003), in which Angelina Jolie portrays an aid worker during the 1984 - 1985 famine in Ethiopia.