Muslum Gurses

Muslum Gurses was a popular Turkish arabesque singer and actor, who was also known as Muslum Baba (Father Muslum). He was born on May 7, 1953 in an adobe hut in the Turkmen village of Fıstıközü in Halfeti district of Şanlıurfa Province, southeastern Turkey. His mother was Emine, his father Mehmet, a farmer. Muslum was only three years old when the family migrated to Adana due to financial problems. At the age of 13, Muslum was singing in the cotton fields he was working in. In his childhood, he also worked as a tailor's and a cobbler's apprentice. In 1967, he participated and won the title of a song contest organized by Adana Family-friendly Tea Garden. He then began to perform at Radio Çukurova. During this time, he adopted the surname Gurses, which means literally "stentorian voice". He recorded his first single "Emmioğlu , Ovada Taşa Basma" in 1968, and his second single "Sevda Yüklü Kervanlar ,Vurma Güzel Vurma" in 1969, which sold 300,000 copies and made him famous. He continued to record folk songs and became one of the most prominent figures of the arabesque genre, which blended Turkish folk instruments with Arabic melodies. He also starred in several movies, mostly in the 1980s, playing roles that reflected his own life story and hardships. He had a distinctive voice and style, and his songs often expressed themes of love, pain, sorrow, and longing. In 1978, he was involved in a car accident that left him partially deaf and gave him gestural and speaking difficulties. He was initially pronounced dead and taken to the morgue, but he was discovered to be alive by chance and underwent a surgery that saved his life. He had a metal plate implanted in his skull for repair. Another tragedy he experienced was that his father murdered his mother and his brother was also killed. He remained silent and resentful towards his father, who remarried after being released from prison. In 1980, he met Muhterem Nur, a well-known movie actress and singer who was 21 years older than him. They had a tumultuous relationship and got married in 1986. She was his second wife, after his first marriage ended in divorce. He was very devoted to her and credited her for supporting him throughout his career. She died in 2020, seven years after his death. He had a large and loyal fan base, especially among the young and the rural people, who identified with his songs and his life struggles. Some of his fans were so enthralled by his songs that they earned a reputation for cutting themselves with razor blades at his concerts. He was also respected by many artists and musicians from different genres and generations. He collaborated with various artists, such as Sezen Aksu, Sertab Erener, and Erkin Koray, and recorded renditions of famous songs from many genres, such as rock, pop, and jazz, in the 2000s. He also experimented with electronic music and rap, and influenced the Turkish hip hop scene. He had more than a dozen albums, and some of his most popular songs include "Yıkıla Yıkıla", "Aldatıldım", "Nilüfer", "Affet", "Vefasız", "Adını Sen Koy", and "Usta". He received many awards and honors for his contributions to Turkish music and culture. He was also involved in social and humanitarian causes, such as supporting the victims of the 1999 İzmit earthquake and the 2011 Van earthquake. He underwent a heart bypass surgery in November 2012, and was in critical condition for several months. He died of heart failure on March 3, 2013 at the age of 59 in Istanbul. His funeral was attended by thousands of fans, as well as famous artists and politicians. He was buried at the Zincirlikuyu Cemetery in Istanbul. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential artists in the history of Turkish music.