A young Kurdish soprano from the southeastern province of Hakkari (Colemerg) has released her first album.
Having started in music at 12 years old when she took up guitar lessons, 18-year-old Eylül Kaya’s voice has spread across social media in the widely shared videos she filmed for her YouTube channel.
Kaya interprets traditional Kurdish songs such as “Lori lori lorikamın”, “Pismamo” and “Malan bar kır”, combining opera with western tunes.
Kaya’s first album “Dûr” was recently released on digital platforms. On the album, Kaya gives voice to two traditional Kurdish songs, ”Bêrîvanê” and ”Girîftarî Tom”.
In a previous interview with Gazete Duvar, Kaya said, “My mother comes from the Serhad region, my father comes from the Botan region. My voice is a blend of the two, I believe. I would also like to sing in Turkish, and in English and French as well. I want to learn different cultures of the world and sing their music. But as I become a more professional singer, Kurdish will be my focus, because I want to reflect my culture in my music. I want to combine my culture with world music.”
Chilean-Swedish tenor Tito Beltrán and Kurdish soprano Pervin Chakar contacted Kaya to give their support to her musical education.