2024 has come to an end. The music magazines gave their top picks of the year, Spotify got unwrapped, and now it’s time for our 6th annual list of the best songs from Turkey.
Here are my mini-reviews and a playlist of my 50 favorite songs + a few extra for luck…
This was originally published on X.
Here’s the playlist link. Read along as you listen.
The songs range from pop to indie to R&B, rap, electro, & pop. I spent hours test-driving and sequencing the playlist for your listening pleasure, so listen from start to finish for the smoothest flow.
1) This year we saw a revival of nostalgia for 80s/90s Turkish pop, like Sezen Aksu’s classic songs arranged by Onnu Tunç.
The best example of this revival is Tuğçe Şenoğul’s gorgeous recording of a Mabel Matiz composition complete with cavernous drums & sparkly synths.
2) Speaking of the 80s, Jakuzi‘s new project takes the best of the period (Miami synth wave style, mind-melting electric guitars, cheesy saxophone solos) and combines it with frontman Kutay Soyacak’s crystalline, poetic lyrics. This band just keeps getting better and better.
3) The nostalgia continues with this beautiful track from Melike Şahin’s new album AKKOR. She is an inheritor of Turkish pop’s golden generation, bringing the best of the genre into the 2020s with powerful lyrics and creative arrangements. One of the best in the biz.
4) Indie singer-songwriter Nilipek. produced a masterpiece with her latest album. Her work has gotten darker and more complex over the years, both in terms of the variety of sounds and her lyrics. Listen to this highlight single from the album and you’ll see what I mean.
5) Burakbey has been creating alternative pop for years, building new worlds with each successive project. I think I like his songs from 2024 the best, each taking up a different aspect of boyhood and manhood through catchy yet complex earworms.
6) What should we call the kind of music KARDELEN makes? Orientalist R&B maybe? Soul alla Turca?
The young singer/composer/producer has had a hell of a year with her debut album HABİBİ. If you’re just tuning in, she’s one of the top new talents from Turkey you need to know.
7) Mabel Matiz had a massive 2023 with an era-defining album. But this year, there’s been no rest for the wicked. Besides composing songs for some of the most talented female vocalists in country, he released this Greek laïkó-style arrangement of a fan-favorite live song Kömür.
8) Selin Geçit is the Turkish singer perhaps best poised for an international breakout. Seni Gördüğüm An may have been her biggest hit this year, but Can You Understand Me? is her most creative with its Radiohead-eque melody, flamenco flourishes, and bilingual lyrics.
9) I just love the transformations this song goes under in its brief 3:20. It begins as a plaintive acoustic guitar melody before the hypnotic beat comes in, finally crescendoing in a massive digital wash. Ekin Beril and producer Caner Anar are some of the best out there.
10) Speaking of powerful production, the latest by accomplished trumpeter and singer Dilan Baykay is a masterclass in how to create atmosphere in a song. If you’re just tuning in, Dilan is one of the brightest young talents in Turkey at the moment.
If you’re following along on the playlist while reading, you’ve noticed that we’ve started really strong! The songs on my playlist aren’t ranked, but I especially wanted the first bunch to leave a strong impression of the variety of talent in Turkey.
Let’s continue with another.
It’s gratifying to spot artists early and watch their careers progress. Seda Erciyes was on the first of these yearly playlists I made in 2019. I have to say I was right to mark her as an important new voice, as proven by her latest conceptual alt-R&B project Bataklığımda.
12) Based between London and LA, Emir Taha is another of Turkey’s most creative young voices. Like many of his peers, his songs flow effortlessly between Turkish and English while drawing creatively on the latest trends in youth culture and music. He’s a rare talent, trust me.
13) It came out last year, but let me just quickly plug Brek‘s album “1990.” It is one the best works of Turkish alternative music in the last decade. In his singles from 2024, like Gece Beni Almadan, he continues the trend of music equal parts dancy and introspective.
14) Working with Kenan Doğulu as co-producer & mentor, Bade Karakoç combines oud & electro beats in her latest meditation on loneliness. The lyrics leave us with the evocative image of “tek kişilik rakı sofraları” as the singer imagines what it will take to forget a failed affair.
A quick break…
If this is your first time seeing my end-of-year list, you might be wondering who I am. I’m an academic who writes on popular culture in Turkey and also a journalist and critic.
I curate those most interesting songs each week in a monthly playlist, so if you’re interested in getting updates on Turkish music throughout the year, keep your eye on this playlist.
From a pool of almost 800 good songs I earmarked from 2024, I narrowed it down to 50 (okay fine, I cheated, it’s 55) and that’s what this end-of-year list is. Okay, let’s continue.
15) Kazakhstan-born, Istanbul-based musician May performs indie pop in the style of Clairo or Beabadoobee. She’s one of genre’s best practitioners, writing twee songs for the TikTok age with a 1970s degree of pop artistry. I love how this song builds towards its emotional climax.
16) When I think of Paptircem‘s powerful voice and writing, I ask myself “How can a person this young make music so profoundly sad?” The answer is in the lyrics. Kaybettim Yirmilerimde is an anthem of youth under the ‘New Turkey,’ where the hopeless age long before their time.
17) I love a good banger. Drawing (to my ear) on folk-rockers like Sheryl Crow or Meredith Brooks, Beliz is one of my favorite new voices out of Turkey.
For those following along with the playlist at home, you can see we’re heading into the rock portion of the evening!
18) Sun-kissed skin, a pair of white capris, hotsand, thoughts of an old lover on the last day of summer… The quasi-tropical and nostalgic themes of Palmiyeler‘s music appears rather simple, but it’s hard to explain the magic that makes it feels so entirely poignant.
19) Turkish rock legends Duman returned after a long break with new music in 2024. Not only have they still got it, but the first single Kufi off the upcoming album became an instant classic with its biting commentary on the disastrous last elections in Turkey.
20) With Evdekiler, Selût has produced a powerful anthem of rebellion against the way the family structure so often crushes our ability to realize our full potential, especially if you happen to be a woman and especially in a place like Turkey. The song is a rare gem.
21) With twinkling guitars reminiscent of the golden age of indie rock with bands like Phoenix and The Strokes, Kristal Kit is one of the best new acts in Turkish rock.
I much prefer this sound to the revival of the revival of the revival of Anadolu Rock still going around.
22) “Get in my car / Let’s go to the bridge / Let’s make love secretly under the stars.” What a perfect little treasure of a duet by newcomers Hav Hav! and long-time indie pop master Lin Pesto! Sometimes, simpler is better. Okay, ready? Let’s get deeper into Turkey’s rock scene!
23) From punk or pop to metal, Parham A.G has his prints all over the local scene as a producer and performer. His debut solo album, though, is a masterclass in Türkçe pop punk for all those teenage fans of Green Day and blink-182.
24) I wish more Turkish musicians would just go with the rockstar thing. Cem Pievneli has some perfectly good songs, if a little calm. And then he put out Superman this year and I realized what he could do with this snotty-nosed, full-throttle punk energy. Please sir, some more!
25) Fans of dreamy, psychedelic, shoegazey music like Beach Fossils or Diiv need to know about Istanbul’s light motiv. Their first EP Koy is from the more experimental end of contemporary Turkish rock, but it just goes to show how wide the variety of good stuff is here.
In the spirit of full disclosure, the next song is from a BAND and I play in myself. Hell, it’s my playlist so why not?
Jokes aside, Parham A.G (who you saw above) and Paul Benjamin Osterlund and Yasin both of whom are also in AŞK, write great music & I love playing with them.
26) Here’s Bu Mu Sevdan by AŞK, who I play bass guitar for. This year we put out our debut EP titled AŞK FOREVER. We’re going for a 90s alt-rock, Dinosaur Jr., Goo Goo Dolls, Mineral kind of thing. This time I’ll leave you to be the judge of whether it’s successful or not.
27) Melis Karaduman has long been doing American-style soul/R&B vocals over more electronic tracks. Lately, her song writing has been getting more vulnerable on topics like toxic relationships as she leans into a powerful rock style. Great stuff.
28) Yalnayak call their music a space-funk/rock fusion. Sounds about right.
They make sleek, funky, groovy music over frontwoman Damla’s ethereal vocals. They put out a great debut album called Ayıp Olmasın this year.
29) Okay, so like, think Turkish pop but hold the arabesk. No more moping or melancholy but something like the good days of 90s pop dance bangers but suited to a 2024 sonic world. That’s what groups like Kalabalıklar are doing and believe me, I’m HERE FOR IT.
30) From the province of Hatay, Selin Sümbültepe has leaned into her heritage with joint Arabic-Turkish lyrics and a combination of Middle Eastern melodies and creative production from her Lebanese collaborator Zeid Hamdan. In Meryem Meryemti she gives a new face to a folk song.
31) “Since childhood / I’ve always searched for you / Someone to play games with / Ah, lose to me.”
In this charming duet with Gülinler from talented singer-songwriter Ahmet Ali Aslan‘s new album, he draws on British folk and Beatles-eque melodies to explore love’s many games.
32) Can Kazaz is known mostly for his delicate ballads, but he got his start doing hip-hop beats. In this collab with rapper Da Poet, he goes back to his roots, combining heavy-hitting rhymes with gorgeous melodies.
And with this, we start moving into the reggae and rap portion of the playlist.
Let’s continue…
33) As the brutal assault on Gaza continues, the Turkish reggae band Bosphoroots released a moving version of slaughtered Palestinian poet Refaat Alareer’s prescient last will and testimony If I Must Die. I get goosebumps every time I listen to it.
34) Drawing on reggae, trap, hyperpop, and punk, the eclectic band Sorry Nobody are definitely a group worth following.
I expect big things from them in the next year.
35) The highlight of Aga B‘s new album is this moving duet with Su Sonia. The Ankaralı MC is one of the most experimental and interesting voices in the Turkish hip-hop scene.
36) Building his glitchy, electronic track around a sample from Sezen Aksu’s classic song Bu Gece, Ege Çubukçu flirts with everything from afrobeats to chill electronica. It’s an exciting new approach from a Turkish rap scene that can be rather stagnant.
37) This year saw the return of rapper Ezhel with his first solo album since 2017. Having sworn off public statements on politics after being attacked by trolls who willfully misrepresent his words, in 7/24, the climax of the album, he settles scores with the haters & posers.
38) Certain collabs, like that between veteran rappers Kayra and Da Poet, lift both sides to a higher level. From their days together in 90 BPM to their most recent joint album NORMAL, Kayra and Da Poet prove that rap must combine verbal skill, hard rhymes, and a message.
39) Initially growing to popularity on TikTok with this song Araba, M Lisa is a new generation of pop star. She combines old-school boom-bat beats and neo-R&B together in a street-wise, sleek package. Expect to see much more of her in the new year.
40) Reinterpreting prehistoric myths with futurist sounds on her first album Kertenkele Kraliçe’nin Zamansız Masalları, musician and producer Güneş Özgeç proves once again that she’s a rare talent in Turkey’s indie music scene.
41) Inspired by hyperpop and various genres of futuristic electronic/R&B, Billur Battal is on my list of new artists that I expect to blow up. This autotoned collab with producer Arsan Salaryfar manages to feel cold and machine-like while emitting powerful emotional warmth.
42) An underground rapper who found himself rich and famous while still a teen, Mavi‘s latest album MONSIEUR shows his experimental side. Willing to risk the ire of rather conservative Turkish rap fans, he created a sexy R&B album inspired by both Tyler and Timberlake.
43) Heralded as one of Turkey’s next big stars by Spotify, I’m always pleasantly surprised by how experimental Eftalya Yağcı‘s music really is. This is another harshly electronic song that also manages to express so much fragility and emotion.
44) Okay fine, I’m breaking my own rules. Each artist is only supposed to get one solo song on this list, but Tuğçe Şenoğul’s other big hit of 2024, Aşk Deli, is just too good and catchy to ignore. Big up to Ezhel collaborators Artz and Bugy for the strong production.
45) You might think you know what Aleyna Tilki is about, but the pop star is going through an interesting transformation. She’s experimenting with rock, shoegaze, and new collaborators like the up-and-coming experimental producer/singer Zeki Arkun. I’m here for it!
46) Mainstream radio pop in Turkey remains pretty boring. It can mainly be boiled down to fourth-generation arabesk or antiquated Euro-pop. That’s why I’m excited to see new generations of pop musicians try more experimental production, like this great track from Mert Çodur.
Okay, stick with me here because I’m going to get into even more experimental territory for a minute before we end this list again with some more conventional and broadly popular styles.
Come, if you will, down into the underground with me…
47) This is a good song to start with from the hyperpop/scenecore underground because Cetacea has a fantastic ear for pop composition. His track LANET sounds spikey and distorted, but there’s a bubblegum-like heart at its core.
48) What a track! BBGV starts with sparkling 90s emo guitars, moves to a pop-punk build up before banging out with jersey club beats. It finally comes back together with a soulful chorus reminiscent of 90s soft rock.
Hats off to bilgeteker and her collaborators Berkin lll Laleli
49) So imagine a kid from İzmir who’s dedicated his life to an American sub-genre called “Midwest emo.” He’s in the scene as a teen, releasing DIY albums & playing shows. Fast forward and Moko has refined his sound, putting out one of the best Turkish punk albums in recent years.
50) This track sounds incredibly filthy. The production is harsh and heavy. But over it all, the rapper known as UZUM3 uses her strangely angelic autotuned voice to tie it all together. Whether you like hyperpop or even know what it is, this song is true counterculture.
51) As a founder of the band Çilekeş and a collaborator of Gaye Su Akyol and others, Görkem Karabudak has his chops for good rock music. Not much in music truly surprises me anymore, but his new EP Kontra is truly mind-melting stuff. Türkçe rock for the year 3024.
52) 3pillie is hard to explain. He’s a multi-instrumentalist who can play everything on stage, a Turkish kid who raps like he’s from Staten Island, a jazz fan who knows his way around a piano, and a math-rocker who takes the guitar inside out. Just trust me on this one.
53) Working with talented jazz musicians including Ediz Hafızoğlu, in this song Bîdar reinterprets Şemsi Yastıman’s 1968 folk song Welcome, Aliens! A hilarious address to outer-space visitors that was a way to make fun of contemporary politics, it works well in our day.
54) Another of Mabel Matiz’s many compositions for other artists, Zeynep Bastık‘s performance of Lan became one of the stand-out popular songs of 2024. The unique grain of her voice works well with Mabel’s characteristic melodies.
55) With the moniker Armageddon Turk, producers Orkun Tunç & Zag Erlat released the 2nd part of their “Anadolu Lo-fi” series. Classic Turkish folk songs reimagined with the chill sounds of old-school hip-hop. It’s a perfect way to end the mixtape on a reflective note.
But wait..
If you’ve made it to the end of the list, congratulations! And I want to reward you with a big piece of news. I have new project related to Turkish music news and criticism coming in 2024.
I’ve been doing this for years and it’s time to level up.
Do you want to be the first to hear about my new music publication? Send a blank email with the subject line HENGAME to k*nanbsh*rpe@gmail.com (fill in the blanks)
I will email you back as we get ready to launch!
