Tarkan is undisputedly one of the Turkey’ s greatest representatives, with far reaching success throughout Europe, Russia, Turkic Republics, Middle East, South America and Australia.

He is a World Music Award winning artist who has sold over 15 million records and charted top 40 singles for every hit released from 1992 to the present day.

Tarkan’s lasting impression is undeniable – as both he and his music have been woven into the rich and intricate fabric of Turkish culture. His music has always flowed to the beat of pop culture with his heart drumming to its ever-changing pulse.

  • Tarkan’s debut album Yine Sensiz was released by Istanbul Plak Ltd. (the record company that released the first four of his albums) in 1992. The album sold 800,000 units.
  • His second album Aacayipsin was released in 1995. 2,300,000 units sold resulted in his first #1 single, the title track of the album Şıkıdım internationally known as Shikidim and established Tarkan as a force to be noticed in the world of Turkish music.
  • The Aacayipsin tour consisted of 85 live concerts throughout Europe & Turkey where 26 of them were stadium performances.
  • The third album Ölürüm Sana was released in 1997 and reached 2,400,000 units sold nationwide.
  • The hit, Şımarık of Ölürüm Sana, and popularly known as Kiss Kiss exploded onto the world market and topped the Billboard Charts Hot 100 List selling alone 1,000,000 units.
  • A sold out European tour followed with visits in 17 cities in 8 countries.
  • Hits from the third album got heavy airplay on international music channels including MCM & MTV Europe.
  • In 1998, PolyGram France licensed Ölürüm Sana, re-releasing it internationally as a compilation album entitled Tarkan in over 50 countries.
  • The album sold over 3,500,000 units worldwide – certified platinum in Mexico and gold in France, Holland, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden, and Columbia.
  • Besides the very famous English versions of Şımarık by Stella Soleil and cover of the same by Holly Valance both under the title Kiss Kiss, there were many other covers of the song in English and various languages  -Russian, Ukranian, Spanish, Korean, Hungarian, German, Serbian, Persian, Greek, Hebrew, Japanese, Dari, Indonesian, Telugu (Indian), Portuguese, Bulgarian, Romanian and Slovenian. Şıkıdım was released as the second single after the success of Şımarık which has also been covered in many languages.
  • To honor his successes, Tarkan was awarded a World Music Award, at Monaco’s 1999 WMA.
  • Following his appearances in Turkey, Tarkan toured in over 17 cities in Europe, with additional stops in South America.
  • Karma, the fourth album was released in August 2001.
  • Kuzu Kuzu, the first single off the album, released in May 2001, held the #1 position for three months and sold alone 600,000 units.
  • Karma’ s success, with over 2,000,000 units sold, extended to Russia where it influenced a surprising change in the landscape of the Russian music market.
  • Following this triumph, being requested to record the official song of the Turkish National Soccer Team, Tarkan released Bir Oluruz Yolunda re-writing Taş from Karma.
  • Furthermore, Hüp from Karma was used in the documentary film produced by the Turkish Ministry of Tourism, which also rewarded him for his effective contribution to represent Turkey.
  • Dudu, his 5th album, released in Summer 2003 by HITT Music, record company owned by Tarkan, garnered unprecedented acclaim for Tarkan  and sold over 1,500,000 units in Turkey. Another record-breaking sale number has been reached in Russia resulting in an award for the album’s title track Dudu.
  • The release of his first English album Come Closer in 2006 under Universal Music Germany marked a new era for Tarkan. Singing in English exposed Tarkan’s music to a new world of listeners with sold out concert tours round the globe.
  • Come Closer is a globally recorded album, produced in New York, Los Angeles, London and Istanbul and is a work of Tarkan’s collaboration with world class composers & musicians, as well as guest appearances by artists and producers such as Wyclef Jean/Why Don’t We (Aman Aman), Brian Kierulf and Josh Schwartz aka KNS, David Werner, Devrim Karaoglu, the Jettsonz, Lester Mendez, Ozan Çolakoğlu , Pete Martin and Supaflyas.
  • In 2007, Tarkan unveiled his new album Metamorfoz (Metamorphosis) and despite the music industry’s overall decline in physical sales, close to half a million units were sold upon release.
  • Always at the forefront, Tarkan became the most downloaded artist on TTNetMüzik -Turkey’s digital music market leader back then- where hits from Metamorfoz reached 1,500,000 initial and 10,000,000 of total downloads.
  • Metamorfoz was followed by the release of the Metamorfoz Remixes album in 2008, which had Tarkan collaborating with world renowned DJ’s, such as Tїesto.
  • The release of Metamorfoz in Russia in 2008 was followed by Tarkan’s initial license deal for the Middle East market.
  • Besides the successes in his music career, being an environmental activist, Tarkan continues to devote his time to causes that matter to him the most, including his involvement in the Doğa Derneği (Nature Association), as a spokesperson raising awareness for environmental issues.
  • His 2008 single Uyan, motivated fellow artists in Turkey to join the cause.
  • Tarkan has continued in his philanthropic activism through his partnership with PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), as the face of their campaigns, inspiring not only his musical peers but also his devoted fans, to stand up for change.
  • The 8th studio album Adımı Kalbine Yaz, released in Summer 2010 by DMC, has been a landmark manifestation in Tarkan’ s career resulting in award winning number of physical sales of close to half a million units in national market accompanied by a record breaking level of millions of digital downloads.
  • Known for his deep love and devotion to Turkish Classical Music, Tarkan released Ahde Vefa in March 2016 from his label, HITT Music. Consisting of 13 memorable songs of Turkish Classical Music, this highly anticipated album has won two well-deserved awards.
  • Tarkan’s new single “Geççek” was released in 2022. As with many of his hits, new single’s lyrics and music belongs to Tarkan and arrangement of “Geççek” was made by Ozan Çolakoğlu. With this single project, Tarkan also signed an important partnership with Youtube in Turkey.
  • Tarkan released his brand new song Yap Bi Güzellik in 22 July 2022 on all music platforms. “Yap Bi Güzellik” is written by Tarkan, composed by Tarkan and Ozan Çolakoğlu, and produced by Doğan Music Company.
  • Tarkan released his brand new single Son Durak. This new hit met with all Tarkan fans on 18 November 2022. Son Durak is written by Tarkan, arranged by Ateş Berker Öngören.
  • Another aspect of Tarkan’ s career steps is his covers in tribute albums, his songs in compilation albums and exclusive projects:
  • Benzemez Kimse Sana – Müzeyyen Senar ile Bir Ömre Bedel – 1998
  • Özgürlük İçimizde – Single for Turkcell – 2002
  • Ayrılık Zor – Single for Avea – 2005
  • Alaturka – İz (Trace) – Fahir Atakoğlu – 2008
  • Herşeye Rağmen – Kalbim – Enbe – 2010
  • Aşk Gitti Bizden — 01 – Ozan Colakoglu – 2011
  • Hadi Bakalım – 01 – Ozan Colakoglu – 2011
  • Kara Toprak – Soundtrack for Entelköy Against Efeköy (Movie) – 2012
  • Hatasız Kul Olmaz – Orhan Gencebay – 2012
  • Firuze – Aysel’ in – 2013
  • Hop De – Zamansız Şarkılar  – İskender Paydaş – 2014
  • Yemin Ettim – Kayahan’ ın En İyileri – 2014
  • Ceylan – Alakasız Şarkılar – 2017
  • Yalnızlar Treni – Ve Nazan Öncel Şarkıları – 2018
  • Tarkan’s long awaited pop album 10 has been released on June 15th, 2017. His 10th studio album woven with his sincerity and passion consists of 14 songs from various sounds written and composed by Tarkan as well as Sezen Aksu, Aysel Gürel, Nazan Öncel, Günay Çoban, Gülşah Tütüncü, Ümit Sayın, Murat Matthew Erdem-Ayça Z.Aydın (Miya) and Serdar İzzet Özdoğan.

AWARDS:

List of awards Tarkan has won during his career:

International:

  • 1999, World Music Awards (Monaco)
  • Best Selling Middle Eastern Artist
  • 1999, Record Fair Midem (Cannes)
  • Best Selling Pop Single: Şımarık
  • 2004, The Pud Award (Russia)
  • “Song of the Year”: Dudu
  • “Best Selling Foreign Album of the Year”: Dudu

Domestic:

  • 1995 Müzik Ödülleri
  • Yılın Erkek Pop Sanatçısı (Male Pop Singer of the Year)
  • Yılın Şarkısı (Song of the Year): Aacayipsin
  • 1997 Altın Kelebek
  • Yılın Erkek Pop Sanatçısı (Male Pop Singer of the Year)
  • 1998 Kral TV Müzik Ödülleri
  • Yılın Şarkısı (Song of the Year): Şımarık
  • Yılın En Çok Satan Albümü (Best Selling Album of the Year): Ölürüm Sana
  • 1998 Altın Kelebek
  • Yılın Erkek Pop Sanatçısı (Male Pop Singer of the Year)
  • 2001 MGD Altın Objektif Ödülleri 
  • Yılın En İyi Pop Müzik Sanatçısı (Best pop singer of the year)
  • 2001 Altın Kelebek
  • Yılın Erkek Pop Sanatçısı (Male Pop Singer of the Year)
  • Onur Ödülü (Honor Award)
  • Yılın Videosu (Video of the Year): Hüp
  • 2002 Kral TV Müzik Ödülleri
  • Yılın Erkek Pop Sanatçısı (Male Pop Singer of the Year)
  • Yılın Şarkısı (Song of the Year): Kuzu Kuzu
  • Yılın Videosu (Video of the Year): Hüp
  • Yılın Albümü (Album of the year): Karma
  • 2002 MGD Altın Objektif Ödülleri
  • En İyi Erkek Yorumcu (Best male singer)
  • Yılın Albümü (Album of the year): Karma
  • 2004 Kral TV Müzik Ödülleri 
  • En iyi pop erkek sanatçısı (Best male pop singer)
  • Yılın En Çok Satan Albümü (Best Selling Album of the Year): Dudu
  • 2009 Kral TV Müzik Ödülleri
  • Müyap Diamond Award (Best Selling Album of the Year): Metamorfoz
  • 2011 Kral TV Müzik Ödülleri
  • En İyi Albüm (Best Album): Adımı Kalbine Yaz
  • En İyi Erkek Sanatçı (Best Male Artist)
  • En İyi Şarkı (Best song): Sevdanın Son Vuruşu
  • En İyi Beste (Best composition of a song): Sevdanın Son Vuruşu
  • En iyi Klip (Best Video of the Year): Öp
  • Radyolarda En Çok Çalınan Sanatçı (Most Played Artist for Airplay)
  • Müyap (Yılın En Çok Satan Albümü) (Best Selling Album of the Year): Adımı Kalbine Yaz
  • 2011 Altın Kelebek
  • En iyi pop erkek solisti (Best male pop singer)
  • Yılın Şarkısı (Song of the Year): Sevdanın Son Vuruşu
  • 2014 Kral TV Müzik Ödülleri
  • En İyi Cover (Best Cover of the Year): Firuze
  • 2016 Altın Kelebek
  • En İyi Proje (Best Project): Ahde Vefa
  • 2017 Altın Kelebek
  • Yılın Şarkısı (Song of the Year) Beni Çok Sev
  • Yılın Erkek Pop Sanatçısı (Male Pop Singer of the Year)

SPONSORSHIPS

Tarkan’s songs, which include Simarik, Shikidim, Kuzu Kuzu and Dudu have become contemporary pop standards being translated into many different languages in order to accommodate the international demand and his image, has garnered interest and endorsement of some of the most recognizable brands around the world.

He signed sponsorship deals with;

  • DORITOS  (1996)
  • POLICE (Sunglasses – 1997)
  • PEPSI  (2000 – 2001)
  • TURKCELL  (GSM Operator / 2000 – 2001 – 2002) 
  • AVEA (GSM Operator / 2005 – 2006)
  • DORITOS  (2009)
  • FANTA  (2011 – 2012)
  • FİLLİ BOYA (Turkish Paint Company / 2015)
  • TURKCELL – FIZY (GSM Operator / 2017 – 2018)
  • COCA COLA (2018 – 2019)
  • TRENDYOL (2021 – 2022)
  • YOUTUBE (2022)
  • DISNEY (2022 – 2023)

LIVE PERFORMANCES

  • Tarkan, who performed in most of the stadiums in Turkey as well as many cities all over the world, is known with his uniquely energetic stage performance and the sincere connection with his audience, which creates a magical atmosphere.
  • Since 2005, every year, he sells out at his numerous back-to-back shows in the most prestigious venue in Istanbul, Harbiye Openair Theater.
  • One of his exceptional performances was in 2008 at Karadeniz Ereğli Festival where there was an audience close to a nearly 1.000.000 people gathered in the city center to see him live on stage.
  • GERMANY

(BERLIN, COLOGNE, DORTMUND, DUSSELDORF, FRANKFURT, HANNOVER, HAMBURG, MANNHEIM, MUNICH, OBERHAUSEN, STUTTGART, KOLN)

  • AUSTRIA

(VIENNA / DANUBE ISLAND FESTIVAL 2006 – 250.000 spectators, DORNBIRN – 2011, VIENNA/ WIENENER STADTHALLE-2019)

  • FRANCE

(PARIS / OLYMPIA – 1999, ZENITH – 2011)

  • SWEDEN

(STOCKHOLM / HOVET – 2019)

  • MONACO

(MONTE CARLO / SALLES DES ETOILES – SUMMER FESTIVAL 2014 & GALA SHOW 2015)

  • SWITZERLAND

(ZURICH / BASEL / 2004 – ZURICH / SAMSUNG HALL 2019)

  • BELGIUM

(HASSELT / 2011)

  • HOLLAND

(AMSTERDAM / HEINEKEN MUSIC HALL – 2008 / 2011, AMSTERDAM / AFAS LIVE – 2019

ROTTERDAM / AHOY – 2007 / 2018)

  • DENMARK

(COPENHAGEN / 2008)

  • U.K.

(LONDON / WEMBLEY ARENA – 2008, EVENTIM APOLLO– 2019)

  • BULGARIA

(SOFIA / 2006)

  • ROMANIA

(BUCHAREST / 2006)

  • MACEDONIA

(SKOPJE / 2006)

  • RUSSIA

(MOSCOW / KREMLIN PALACE – 1999, LUZHNIKI – 2004,

OLIMPYSKI – 2006, CROCUS HALL – 2009, ST.PETERSBURG – 2009,

YEKATERINBURG – 2009, CROCUS CITY HALL– 2019)

  • UKRAINE

(KIEV / OPEN-AIR SHOW / 2006 – 150,000 spectators)

  • LATVIA

(RIGA / 2007)

  • KAZAKHSTAN

(ALMATY, ASTANA / 2004 – 2013)

  • AZERBAIJAN

(BAKU /STADIUM SHOW / 2004 – 60,000 spectators / 2006 / 2008)

  • TURKMENISTAN

(ASHGABAT / ICE PALACE – 2012 / 2015)

  • TATARSTAN

(KAZAN / TATNEFT ARENA – 2019)

  • CYPRUS

(KYRENIA – NICOSIA)

  • U.A.E

(DUBAI / 2007)

  • TUNISIA

(TUNIS)

  • MOROCCO

(RABAT)

  • EGYPT

(SHARM EL-SHEIKH)

  • AUSTRALIA

(SYDNEY, MELBOURNE)

  • U.S.A.

(NEW YORK / HAMMERSTEIN BALLROOM – 2017 – 2 shows

LOS ANGELES / THE NOVO – 2017)