27 Famous Turkish Songs

“Yatcaz Kalkcaz” by Gülşen

Song Year: 2013

Yatcaz Kalkcaz is an upbeat song emphasizing Gülşen’s powerful emotions. Here, she sings about mood changes and how work can bring her down, but through sheer feeling, she can get through to the time she wants to spend.

“Naber” by Hande Yener

Song Year: 2014

Unlike many other famous Turkish songs, “Naber” steps away from love. Instead, the lyrics are essentially a greeting, explaining Hande’s surprise at seeing someone she hasn’t met in a while and adding in her worry at not having heard from them.

In the lyrics, she acknowledges that life can be lonely and difficult. However, there’s also an undertone that leaving things this way is probably a mistake, so people should check up on each other and communicate regularly.

“Miş Miş” by Simge

Song Year: 2015

Miş Miş is technically a song about relationships, but it can apply to many similar situations without much trouble. In it, Simge asks people to simply drop their attitudes and be open when explaining things. She says it’s not a trap, but everything can get zig-zagged.

Simge also makes regular references to slalom through the lyrics here. Most people don’t associate Turkey with snow, but the country has numerous snow-capped mountains where winter sports are practical. It’s a good reminder that most countries are more complex than the basic things others tend to know about them.

“İstersen” by Buray

Song Year: 2015

Buray’s 2015 hit is a song about the complexities of love. In it, Buray talks about finding lost emotions, accepting something you know is a lie, and even how suffering can be okay if it’s from someone you love.

That’s not a sentiment everyone will agree with, but it does speak to the way that emotions can be remarkably powerful things that defy all logic and reason. Audiences seem to agree, as this song has racked up more than a hundred and fifty million listens on YouTube alone, never mind other platforms.

“Janti” by Murat Boz

Song Year: 2016

Murat Boz is one of the hottest Turkish singers in recent years. “Janti” starts with an upbeat tune, talking about a woman who captivated him with an intense look. After this initial feeling, he makes an offer, asking the woman to have fun with him as he promises to serve her faithfully.

However, Murat added some complexity to the lyrics, including an easily-missed line about losing control of his expression. His desires can be messy and contradictory, and that’s what makes them stand out so much.

“Adeyyo” by Ece Seçkin

Song Year: 2016

Adeyyo is another song about betrayal, starting with a discussion about how Ece prefers to believe what she sees instead of what she hears. Immediately afterward, though, she mentions that she heard about what was happening behind her back, then announces her intention to move on instead of simply accepting what happened.

Adeyyo is relatively long for its amount of lyrics, with some bold instrumental choices that help drive Ece’s point home.

“Cevapsız Çınlama” by Emrah Karaduman

Song Year: 2016

“Cevapsız Çınlama” is a complex but impressively popular song, with Emrah bringing in Aleyna Tilki as a featured singer to support the song’s design. The lyrics focus on some of the complexities in relationships, including the difficulty of forgetting others and a willingness to let others think she was.

Interestingly, this song doesn’t identify either character as male or female, though it may be written with a gender signifier when someone translates it into English. That means that rather than specifically being about a woman’s experience, this song can be interpreted as applying to any sort of couple.

Best Turkish Songs, Final Thoughts

Turkey is a surprisingly powerful country in the world of music, with a range of hits over decades that have garnered hundreds of millions of views. The frequent musical complexity of famous Turkish songs makes them a great option for any music lover to listen to, whether or not you need help interpreting the lyrics.