 He's crazy about Madonna, he dances like Michael Jackson, and he wants to go to the top. His name: Tarkan, 33 years old and in Turkey long a super star.With his master piece: Simarik = "Spoiled" the musician from the Bosporus has now also managed to touch the right nerve in the west.
The song with the kiss achieved the highest rankings in the international charts, although it's not entirely new. In Turkey, already two years ago, Simarek was played country-wide through the loud speakers.
In his pieces that are often based on traditional Turkish melodies, Tarkan combines oriental sounds with catchy western pop rhythms. He also mixes traditional Turkish instruments like the Darbuka drum or the guitar-like Ud with electronic beats. Tarkan is at home in both cultures. The glowing-eyed sunny boy, full name Tarkan Tevetoglu, grew up in Germany, in Alzey, a little place near Frankfurt/Main. At the age of fifteen he and his family went back to Istanbul in Turkey. He attended the college of music and earned some extra money with performances in clubs and discos.
 1993 was his year of destiny. He met Mehmet Sögütoglu, producer and owner of one of the biggest record companies in Turkey, exactly at a time when he had decided to go back to Germany. Tarkan stayed. With support of Sögütoglu the then 21-year-old published his debut album "Yine Sensiz" (Without you again). At first nobody wanted to know it, that's why without further ado, Tarkan took things into his own hands. He combed all shops in Istanbul and gave out his posters with the remark "Please hang it in a prime place. My record is good!" It sold more than 700,000 copies straight away.
With his following albums Tarkan achieved the title of the Turkish King of Pop. He, by the way, was the first man to be portrayed on the front-page of the Turkish Cosmopolitan. Today Tarkan fills arenas with 20,000 people. With his stage show he especially bewitches the female fans, stripping his clothes off his body, swinging his hips and singing about love and passion, but not about politics. He wants to make music for everybody, about what matters to him: feelings. These are known to be boundless.
However, the smart singer was then put in his place. The Turkish army called up Tarkan to do his military national service for two years. Substitutional service does not exist in Turkey. It would however be unimaginable for him to one day be involved in a war and have to fight with weapons. For this reason and in order not to endanger his career through a two year break, he emigrated to New York. From there he hopes that the Turkish military will have mercy on him. To date nothing has happened. Tarkan hasn't lost hope, particularly because his name means "Hope".
Well, it's hope that he needs to become as famous as Michael Jackson or Madonna. He has got enough stage experience. When as a little boy Tarkan sang and danced at festivals, his parents knew for certain: "One day you will be a star!" To make sure that this comes true he will sing in English and not just in Turkish as he has done in the past.
Dörthe Schmidt
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It Started With A Kiss
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