The songs on the EP TURKISH DELIGHTS are about naivety, desire, fusion, Islam, sensuality, and self-determination, but recent political events have given FERHAT's "delicate Turkish affairs'' a more serious turn: In a time marked by political and religious extremes and global crises, his songs become their own musical revolutions about love, freedom and civil disobedience. FERHAT's playful global pop becomes urgent and universal in a world where fake news, fear and prejudice are on the rise.
Whether it's veiled women dancing in close embrace with guys in leather gear in the video for LET ME BE, government oppression in the clip for FATHER STATE, shot on the original set of Babylon Berlin, or FERHAT's bittersweet love affair with the Turkish metropolis in MY ISTANBUL - at the core, it's always about one thing: "I ask myself why I am not allowed to live out all facets of myself. Why can't I be everything I love? I want to call for understanding, reconciliation and peace, because we all belong together. We are human beings and should - even after incidents like the one in Hanau and everywhere in the world - we should be allowed to move closer together again and simply love each other."
His new single PEHLIVAN doesn't mince words either: With beautiful, half-naked
bodies and a minimalistic beat, PEHLIVAN perfectly sums up the TURKISH DELIGHTS FERHAT has to offer for the EP release. The video breaks taboos by turning traditional Turkish men's wrestling sport into an erotic affair and points out the delicate topic of homosexuality in Islam, while the accompanying track is both sensual and danceable at the same time. International reactions to PEHLIVAN demonstrate how international FERHAT's musical language is: It was nominated for "Best Music Video" at the Basel Film Festival, and has long since secured a place on the cult compilation "Listen to Berlin".
PEHLIVAN will be released on Nov. 19, one week before the release of TURKISH DELIGHTS, followed by the PEHLIVAN remix by producer and DJ İpek İpekçioğlu, who with her "Eklektik BerlinIstan" is considered a musical and political visionary worldwide. FERHAT will follow up with the release of a complete remix EP of TURKISH DELIGHTS.
About FERHAT:
The actor-turned-musician FERHAT first studied acting at the Theatre College Of Bern and went on to play in the well-known ARD crime series “Mordkommission Istanbul''. In the following years the artist of swiss-turkish origin took singing lessons at the “Popschule Berlin”, “Sängerakademie Hamburg '' and the Zurich School of Arts. Starting out as a dancer for global pop phenomenon Madonna and Robert Miles just to name a few, FERHAT went on to release his first music on Dance Compilations by ZYX or Dance Street/Big Bird Records. His live shows brought him on the stage of Berlin’s legendary SO36, as well as a performance at the Zurich Christopher Street Day and the M4Music Festival, where he was nominated for an award in the category “Best Pop”. Most of FERHAT’s music is made in Berlin-Kreuzberg, where he lives and works with frequent collaborators Jovanka von Wilsdorf (e.g. Polarkreis 18, Laing, Tim Bendzko, Annette Humpe) and Masen Abou Dakn.
