Belkıs Akkale is a Turkish folk music singer, songwriter, and composer born in Istanbul, Turkey, on May 17, 1954. She is also known by the nickname “Türkü Bacı”. Akkale began her professional music career in 1972, releasing her debut 45rpm single “Seni Allah Verdi Kimse Alamaz / Aşk Mahkumu”. She followed with several 45rpm releases, including “Boş Beşik / Gözüm Kapıda Kaldı” in 1973 and “İnsan Sevdiğine Kardeş Mi Der / Kızılırmak” in 1974. Her debut studio album, Kaldır Nikabını, was released in 1977. She subsequently released the studio albums Gam Elinden (1978), Dostlara Selam (1980), Dadey (1982), Sağolun (1983), Türkü Türkü Türkiyem 1 (1984), Türkü Türkü Türkiyem 2 (1985), and Güvercinim (1986). In 1991, she collaborated with Hülya Süer and Güler Duman on the album Türküler Bizden Dinlemek Sizden, and in 1996 she released the collaborative album Seher Yıldızı with Arif Sağ. In addition to her music career, Akkale developed a career as an actress in Turkish cinema, starring in several feature films including Kara Diken (1986), Güvercinim (1986), Gelin Oy (1986), Tırpan (1987), and Tapulu Irgat (1987).
