Tanju Okan (August 27, 1938 – May 23, 1996) was a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

singer.

Life

He was born in

İzmir İzmir ( , ; ), also spelled Izmir, is a metropolitan city in the western extremity of Anatolia, capital of the province of the same name. It is the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara and the second largest urban agglo ...

on 27 August 1938. He received his primary and secondary education in

Manisa Manisa (), historically known as Magnesia, is a city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province. Modern Manisa is a booming center of industry and services, advantaged by its closeness to the international port cit ...

and

Balıkesir Balıkesir () is a city in Turkey and is the capital city of Balıkesir Province. Balıkesir is located in the Marmara region of Turkey and has a population of 338,936. Between 1341–1922, it was the capital of Karasi. History Close to mo ...

. Afterwards, he went to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

for vocal training. In 1961, he began singing professionally in

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

and then in

İstanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

. He married twice and was the father of a son. During the 1990s, he retired and began living in Urla, a small seaside town of the

İzmir Province İzmir Province ( tr, İzmir ili) is a province and metropolitan municipality of Turkey in western Anatolia, situated along the Aegean coast. Its capital is the city of İzmir, which is in itself composed of the province's central 11 distri ...

. He died from

cirrhosis Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, and end-stage liver disease, is the impaired liver function caused by the formation of scar tissue known as fibrosis due to damage caused by liver disease. Damage causes tissue repai ...

on May 23, 1996.

Career

In the early 1960s, he was a solo singer in the Müfit Kiper orchestra. In 1964, he represented Turkey in the Balkan Music Festival, together with

Tülay German Tülay German (born 1935, also known as Toulaï in France) is a Turkish female singer, currently living in France. She is known for her modern interpretations of Turkish folk music. Early years Tülay German was born in Istanbul in 1935; she wa ...

and

Erol Büyükburç Erol Büyükburç (8 August 1936 – 12 March 2015) was a Turkish singer-songwriter, pop music composer, and actor. Early years and family life Büyükburç was born on 8 August 1936 in Adana. After primary school in his hometown and commerce-h ...

. In the same year, he produced his first 45 rpm record. He had a powerful sound and could easily sing three styles of music popular in the 1960s in Turkey: new compositions, covers of Western music and arranged Turkish folklore music (

türkü Turkish folk music (''Türk Halk Müziği'') is the traditional music of Turkish people living in Turkey influenced by the cultures of Anatolia and former territories in Europe and Asia. Its unique structure includes regional differences under ...

). In the 1970s, he sang two songs which became instant hits; In 1972 ''Öyle sarhoş olsam ki'' ("I wish I was so drunk") and in 1974 ''Kadınım'' ("My Woman"). In 1973, he featured on the multi-singer melody ''Arkadaş Dur Bekle'' (Turkish version of Auntie) together with

Modern Folk Üçlüsü Modern Folk Üçlüsü ("Modern Folklore Trio") is a Turkish music trio. As the name implies, their main source is Turkish folklore songs (Türkü). Early years The group was founded in July 1969 by Doğan Canku, Ahmet Kurtaran and Selami Karai ...

and Nilüfer. He also starred in eleven movies.

Discography

;Albums He also contributed to several multi singer albums.Discography by Ercan Demirel

45s

* ''İnan Yağcı Değilim / Maça Dolmuş'' (Sahibinin Sesi-1965) * ''Kundurama Kum Doldu / Sta Sera Pago Io'' (Sahibinin Sesi-1965) * ''Küçük Fatoşum / Ben Sokak Adamı'' (Sahibinin Sesi-1966) * ''İki Yabancı / Sarhoş'' (Sahibinin Sesi-1967) * ''Babam Gibi / Yaşanmaz Aynı Evde'' ''(duet with Rüçhan Çamay and Durul Gence 5)'' (Regal-1968) * ''Hayat Üç Perdedir / Haydar Haydar'' (Regal-1968) * ''Hasret / Ah Bir Zengin Olsam'' (Yonca-1970) * ''Le Sourire De Mon Amour / S'il N'y Avait Que Toi Au Monde'' (Riviera-1970) * ''Annem / Şansın Varsa'' (Arya-1971) * ''O Gün Gelse / Hayat Bu Nermin'' (Arya-1971) * ''Bir Falcı Vardı / Ağlayan Gözler'' (Balet-1971) * ''Karadeniz Türküsü / Benim De Canım Var'' (Odeon-1971) * ''Başlık Parası / Gelme Ölüm'' (Odeon-1972) * ''Seni Hayatımca Sevdim / Öyle Sarhoş Olsam Ki'' (Fonex-1972) * ''Koy Koy Koy / Çık Git İçimden'' (Philips-1972) * ''Darla Dırlada / Yalancı'' (Fonex-1972) * ''Birisi / Olamaz'' (Balet-1972) * ''Darla Dırlada / Çağırdın Sana Koştum (duet with

Ayten Alpman Ayten Alpman (10 October 1929 – 20 April 2012) was a Turkish jazz and pop singer who gained fame in the 1970s with the song "''Memleketim''" ("My Country") during the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation. Biography Born in Istanbul, Turkey, in 1929, ...

)'' (Melody-1972) * ''Arkadaş Dur Bekle / Kim Ayırdı Sevenleri (duet with

and Nilüfer)'' (Philips-1973) * ''Güzel Yok Mu İnsafın / Seni Sevdim Ben'' (Philips-1973) * ''Ben Ağlarken Gülümserim / Her Gün Her Gece'' (Sinyal-1973) * ''Bir Dost Bulamadım / İç İç Unutursun'' (Fonex-1973) * ''Ben Bir Hiçmişim / Yolla Yolla'' (Diskotür-1974) * ''Gözünde Yaşlarla / Sevince'' (Philips-1974) * ''Kadınım / Yolculuk'' (Diskotür-1974) * ''Şerefe / Aşkı Bulacaksın'' (Philips-1974) * ''Benim Halkım / Biz Doğuştan Sanatçıyız'' (Diskotür-1975) * ''Ayyaş / Var Mısın İçelim'' (İstanbul-1975) * ''Kemancı / Gülünce Gözlerinin İçi Gülüyor'' (Gönül-1976) * ''Dostlarım / Kaderim'' (Nova-1976) * ''Yıldönümü / Deli Gibi Sevdim'' (Philips-1976) * ''Parkta Yatıyorum / Çocukluğum'' (Philips-1978)

Filmography

* ''Cübbeli Gelin'', (1964) * ''Şekerli Misin Vay Vay'', (1965) * ''Yalancının Mumu'', (1965) * ''Fakir Bir Kız Sevdim'', (1966) * ''Aşkın Kanunu'', (1966) * ''İçimdeki Alev'', (1966) * ''Berduş Kız'', (1970) * ''Ah Bir Zengin Olsam'', (1971) * ''Cımbız Ali'', (1971) * ''Yırtık Niyazi'',(1971) * ''Kaynanam Kudurdu'', (1973) * ''Şiribim Şiribom'', (1974) * ''Ne Haber'', (1976) * ''Gazap Rüzgarı'', (1982)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Okan, Tanju 1938 births 1996 deaths Deaths from cirrhosis Musicians from İzmir 20th-century Turkish male singers Balıkesir Lisesi alumni