Selda Bagcan is one of the most famous singers from Turkey. She was a noted political activist, with many of her songs reflecting times of strife, famine, and political corruption in Turkey. She also was inspired by American rock music that was popular at the time, and interpolated musical motifs of that time period into many of her songs.
The best example of her American inspirations being translated into Turkish-themed songs is this song: Ince Ince Bir Kar Yagar, which in English means, "A Wispy Wispy Snow Falls".
In this song she references the intense economic disparity between the rich capital of Istanbul and the impoverished villages neighboring the capital, mentioning dilapidated roads, lack of schools, and droughts all attributed to these villages.
I'm sure it's startling to discover that such a kick-ass song has such a sad connotation to it. I was surprised when I learned the real meaning of the song after enjoying it for many months without even thinking of the lyrics.
Not all of Selda's songs are as intense as the one above. Her debut CD has a near 50-50 split of exuberant, twisty funk compositions and softer, sadder ballads. The softer songs sound more traditionally Turkish than the stronger ones. This next song is a cover by Selda of an old Turkish Folk song: 'Katip Arzuhalım Yaz Yare Böyle', or in English: "My Saz Is Being Played in Sivas"*.
In recent years, Selda's music has entered the mainstream, being sampled by rappers and DJs, bringing her keen hard rock asthetics and Turkish flair from the 1970s to the modern day.
This instrumental remix of Ince Ince, renamed "Heavy", was created by DJ OH NO. It was then used by Mos Def in the song above.
This same remix was also used in the official commercial for the video game Skate 2. It is also featured in the game as a playable track.
I have noticed more modern day artists mentioning Selda Bagcan and the influence of her music. In Rosalie's post, she discusses the band Florence + The Machine. The lead singer of the band, Florence, spoke about Selda Bagcan's music as well. I'm interested in the other ways Selda's music will surface in the near future.
If you liked the previous songs then you may also like:
*A Saz is a Turkish string instrument similar to a guitar.
*Sivas is a city in East-Central Turkey
-Himmler
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