Ãœmit Besen (born 14 October 1956) is a Turkish musical artist. He started his professional career by playing keyboards and singing with his band at the local clubs in
Adana
Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...
, Southern Turkey. While he was in the
army
An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
for his
compulsory military service
Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it contin ...
, a
brigadier-general liked his style and appointed him to sing at the officers' mess.
Rising popularity
After the completion of his 18 months service he returned to Adana. While singing and playing to make his living one day Turkish football legend
Metin Oktay
Metin Oktay (2 February 1936 – 13 September 1991) nicknamed the Crownless King () by Galatasaray S.K. (football team), Galatasaray fans, was a Turkish people, Turkish association football, footballer and one of the most successful goal score ...
visited the club he was working at. Amazed by the power of his voice and his knowledge of synthesizers, Metin Oktay recommended him to his club owner friends in
Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
.
In Istanbul, he kept playing at famous clubs and finally he was teamed up with songwriters
Selami Åžahin
Selami Sahin (born 1948) is a Turkish musician, singer, and songwriter.
Life and career
Åžahin's works have been performed in different languages by artists from European and Middle Eastern countries. He was born to a mother of Egyptian descen ...
and
Ahmet Selçuk İlkan to record his first LP. The result was not only a commercial success.
Today
In 2015, the unforgettable hit of the 80's "Nikah Masası" was made into a duet with
Ajda Pekkan
AyÅŸe Ajda Pekkan (; born 12 February 1946) is a Turkish singer. She is known by the title "superstar" in the Turkish media. Pekkan became a prominent figure of Turkish pop music with her songs, in which she tried to create a strong female figure. ...
with the accompaniment of the Enbe Orchestra.
In 2016, Ümit Besen re-released his classical songs in a rock style album ''Başka'' under the label DMC, in which he performed duets with famous Turkish singers such as Feridun Düzağaç, Pamela, and Cem Adrian. Ümit Besen has also been featured on the rock songs of many singers including Teoman, Mirkelam, Emre Aydın, Manga, Yüksek Sadakat, Pinhani, Grup Seksendört, and Leyla The Band. Umit Besen, who won the acclaim of critics with the slow love songs he sang in the 80's, gave an emphasis to the different spirit of that period by saying in an interview with Hakan Gence from ''
Hürriyet
''Hürriyet'' (, ''Liberty'') is a major List of newspapers in Turkey, Turkish newspaper, founded in 1948. it had the highest circulation of any newspaper in Turkey at around 319,000. ''Hürriyet'' combines entertainment with news coverage and ...
'' that if his song "'Nikah Masası' would have not become a hit" if it was released now.
Works
Discography
*''Åžalak trust'' (1980)
*''Islak mendil'' (1981)
*''Bayramın Olsun'' (1982)
*''Ä°kimizin Yerine'' (1982)
*''Dostlar SaÄŸolsun'' (1983)
*''Yıkılan Gurur'' (1984)
*''Bir Akşam Üstü'' (1984)
*''Vazgeçtim Senden'' (1985)
*''I Love You'' (1986)
*''Deli Gönlüm'' (1987)
*''Halk Konseri 1'' (1987)
*''AÅŸk Burcu'' (1988)
*''Müzikli Bir Masal'' (1989)
*''Bir Tanesin Sen'' (1990)
*''Son Şarkı'' (1991)
*''Gökkuşağı'' (1992)
*''Ä°kimiz De Sevdik'' (1993)
*''Görüşürüz'' (1994)
*''Yalnız Kaldım'' (1995)
*''Yağmur Var Gözlerimde'' (1996)
*''Hadi Git'' (1997)
*''Nostalji'' (1998)
*''Bizim Hikayemiz'' (2000)
*''Dokunsalar Ağlarım'' (2001)
*''O Gece'' (2003)
*''Ben Bu Gece Ölmezsem'' (2006)
*''İyi Günde Kötü Günde'' (2008)
*''Garaj Konserleri'' (2013)
*''Ãœmit Besen 2014'' (2014)
*''BaÅŸka'' (2016)
*''Ãœmit Besen ile BaÅŸka Sahne'' (2019)
Filmography
* ''Islak Mendil'' (1982)
* ''Nikah Masası'' (1982)
* ''Dostlar SaÄŸolsun'' (1983)
* ''Yıkılan Gurur'' (1984)
* ''Sevmek Yeniden DoÄŸmak'' (1984)
* ''Bir Akşam Üstü'' (1985)
* ''Unutursun Diye'' (1985)
* ''Vazgeçtim Senden'' (1985)
* ''Seni Seviyorum'' (1986)
* ''Sevda Rüzgarı'' (1986)
* ''AÄŸlama'' (1988)
* ''Şoför Parçası'' (1987)
* ''Baba Yüreği'' (1987)
* ''Olur Olur'' (2014)
References
External links
Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Besen, Umit
Living people
1956 births
Turkish male singers
Turkish-language singers of Iran
Golden Butterfly Award winners