Hadise Açigköz
Hadise

THE REVIEW

Born in Belgium to Turkish parents, Hadise Açigköz (professionally known simply as Hadise) is a young emerging artist in the European music scene. She rose to fame in 2005 with her first album, entirely in English, titled "Sweat". Hadise quickly established herself in the European market thanks to her talent and the musical genre she offers, which is a blend of R&B and purely Turkish music.

The second album, titled after her own name, was released in June 2008 in Belgium and a week later throughout the rest of Europe. The Turkish version (reviewed here) was released on September 24 of the same year and immediately achieved great success. The only difference between the two versions is the sequence of the tracks. There are two Turkish-language tracks among a total of sixteen+1. The album opens with a tasty intro where the young artist introduces herself simply by saying "the name is Hadise". In the Turkish version of the album follows "Deli Oglan" (crazy boy): a fresh Türk-pop dance track authored by none other than the great Sezen Aksu, a cornerstone in the history of contemporary Turkish music (let's say an Anatolian Mina). The second Turkish track follows, titled "Askkolik" (untranslatable into Italian, except for love addict/junkie). In this track, Hadise's sensual and transgressive characteristics begin to emerge, in the chorus of which she sings "Sen askkolik askkolik askkoliksin/Hem egoist mazoist hem erotiksin" (You are love-addict, love-addict. Also selfish, not just masochist, but also erotic). This track is a bit unconventional for Hadise, who is generally more oriented towards R&B: sounds and rhythms here can indeed be compared to Madonna's works from the "American Life" period onwards. A link between the electronic genre and the one more typical of Hadise is "My Body," in which the young artist explores a decidedly sensual piece. For the rest, the album is a collection of delicious tracks more or less R&B like "My Man And The Devil On His Shoulder", "Busy Bee," or "Intimate". There are new oriental influences in "Prisoner," but especially in "Don't Ask," and obviously in "A Good Kiss," the English version of "Deli Oglan".

Hadise is the author of almost all the tracks and boasts co-authors and producers of the caliber of the aforementioned Sezen Aksu, as well as Yves Jongen, Deniz Erten, and the very Italian Luca Chiaravalle. The continental success of this album earned her a nomination at the MTV Music Awards in the Best Turkish Artist category, alongside names like Hakyo Cepkin, Hande Yener, and Emre Aydin, and the honor and privilege to represent Turkey in Moscow at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the unreleased track "Düm Tek Tek", thus outshining other artists in the running such as the Hepsi Grup or the aforementioned (and reviewed) Hayko Cepkin.