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Tarkan Tevetoglu (born October 17, 1972), popularly known as Tarkan, is a World Music award winning pop singer in Turkey. Tarkan has been known for the use of sexual and romantic themes in his work and has been nicknamed the "Prince Of Pop" by the media. He has released several platinum-selling albums during his career, with an estimated 15 million albums sold. He also produces music through his company HITT Music, which he established in 1997. One of a few European singers that has managed to span chart success over three continents without singing in English, the artist is also noted for his live stage performances. Tarkan`s effect on Turkey has been compared by the Washington Post as analogous to Elvis in America circa 1957 and Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegün described him as one of the best live performers he had ever seen. He has also been listed by Rhapsody as a key artist in the history of European pop music, with his signature song "Simarik" as a keystone track that moved the genre forward.
Tarkan was born in Alzey, Germany, to Ali and Neshe Tevetoğlu, and was named after a popular 1960s Turkish comic book character. The name is said to originate from an ancient Turkic king or title, meaning bold and strong.
His parents were part of the generation of Turkish immigrants that came to West Germany during that country`s economic boom. Tarkan has three older half-siblings named Adnan, Gulay and Nuray from his mother`s first marriage, and a brother, Hakan, and younger sister, Handan from her marriage to his father. Although Tarkan was raised in Alzey until the age of 13, his father Ali suddenly decided to move the family back to Turkey in 1986. His father died of a heart attack in 1995 at the age of 49, and was buried in his home village of Ruzgarlı Koy, in the Turkish Black Sea region of Rize. His mother later married an architect, Seyhun Kahraman. Tarkan keeps close ties with his family in Turkey and Germany. He still understands the language though speaks little, since he has been living in Turkey for 20 years.
Tarkan has charted in Russia, Europe and in the Americas with his definitive song "Simarik" (Spoilt/Kiss Kiss/Chanson Du Bisou/Besos). As a result of its widespread success and immediately recognizable sound of Tarkan kissing on the track, "Simarik" was reincarnated into English as "Kiss Kiss" by Stella Soleil and later Holly Valance (which notched her a UK number one hit), after the composer Sezen Aksu sold the music rights. It has been covered by various artists across the world in various languages. Another successful Aksu collaboration was the hit single "Sikidim" (Shake). His entry into the European musical consciousness kick-started a Turkish pop boom in Germany and Turkey in the 1990s, with his European successes on the verge of the new millennium signalling that the musical borders between Turkey and Europe, more specifically Germany, were dissolving. Because of his success his name was to be taken for granted domestically, if not become a hallmark, in pop music and become the prime example of Turkish pop obtaining an audience outside Turkey to help further the sound development of popular music in Europe. Over the years his works have maintained their popularity, with Tarkan`s 2007 studio album Metamorfoz selling over a quarter of a million copies in the first two weeks of its release on 25 December 2007.
At the height of his fame in 1999, Tarkan was called up for military service, which ha
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