Tarkan Comebacks in the Turkish Press

Posted by Kaya Turan from Rochester, UK, Steffan Matrak from Moscow, Russia and Hatice Soylu from Istanbul, Turkey

As Tarkan returns to Istanbul to conquer the open air with song this month, the media buzz around Tarkan continues. From the latest concert clips to a round-up of rumours and speculations, come ten tales following the artist's comeback.

A pre-show article writes that Tarkan has spent nearly 3 million TL ($900,000) for his September run of shows at the Harbiye. The concerts are reported to be divided into two acts, with Tarkan hiring two stylists for his stage sets. (Akşam)

The first report of yesterday evening's opening show of Tarkan's Harbiye September concerts sees the open air arena packed full with adoring crowds. Tarkan expressed a belief in the effects of a full moon, asking the audience to forgive any errors and that the energy on stage helped him to overcome his shyness. (Sabah)

UPDATE: Disaster strikes September show >>

A media monitoring centre has released a report on the most reported celebrities in the Turkish press last month. Tarkan is 8th on the published top ten list of celebrities who generated the most buzz in August. (MedyaRadar)

A Romanian lifestyle site has asked its readers if they remember Tarkan, who had "a hit in Europe 23 years ago". The article says the singer has aged well and still has millions of fans. (A1)

A rumour being circulated by one newspaper is that musician buddy Yıldız Tilbe is chasing Tarkan to feature in her tribute album, but with no luck so far. (Güneş)

UPDATE: More rumours about Tilbe album >>

Turkey's first and leading social content platform has shared an entertaining post about the signs of the zodiac and their corresponding Tarkan song, while another post lists 15 funny tweets about Tarkan. (Onedio.com)

Another article talks about the recent spate of global successes of Turkish DJs on the world circuit and the popularity of sampling Turkish folk tunes, running with the line that they have succeeded where Tarkan failed. (Yeni Şafak)

Elsewhere, an interview with pop newcomer Edis talks of his dreams to release English singles. The article "Edis to Pick Up Where Tarkan Left Off" reveals Edis' intention to relocate to the UK, where he was born. The 26-year-old is touted as "breathing new life" into Turkish pop with a current run of top 5 singles, although he says he doesn't "feel like a star". (Habertürk)

In a celebrity portal's trending list of "who's in, who's out, and who's down and out", Edis is placed "on the way out" for admitting he can't sing live, while Tarkan's boss, music label exec Samsun Demir is "on the up" for his successes in the music industry. (Uçankuş)

On the same list is one-time Tarkan signing Emir, who has been placed bottom on the "down and out" list. Since a music producer outed Emir as gay in 2011, with rumoured pictures of his transvestite lover circulating forums in 2012, Emir hasn't been able to generate a hit and has been relegated to singing Greek covers. Before this year, Emir was last photographed with Tarkan backstage at a Harbiye show in 2015. (Uçankuş)

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