20 things you didn’t know about Teoman

As the countdown begins to Teoman’s London concert at the O2 Kentish Town this Sunday, here’s our top twenty facts about Turkey’s iconic pop rocker.

Teoman was born Fazlı Teoman Yakupoğlu in Giresun on 20 November 1967.
His biggest music idol is Elvin Presley.
An only child, Teoman lost his dad, a lawyer, when he was just 2.5 years old and was raised by his mum and aunts.
He bought his first guitar with the help of his neighbours, helping to set him off on his future music career.
On his way to being a rock star, Teoman has washed dishes and taught. He also collected and recycled discarded bottles in his university canteen to help raise money for his studies.
Teoman is regarded as one of Turkey’s best songwriters, penning most of his own songs.
He has collaborated with some of Turkey’s female biggest pop and rock singers, including Özlem Tekin (Papatya), Şebnem Ferah (İki Yabancı, En Güzel Hikayem, and Özgürlüğün Elinde), Göksel (Taş Bebek, Palavra), Hande Yener (Arsız), and Nilüfer (Sensiz Olmaz).
Teoman with Şebnem Ferah in 2013
His father’s nickname was Ruhi, which Teoman used to create an alter ego that featured in several of his songs, including İstasyon İnsanları and Zamparanın Ölümü 2 (both from Gönülçelen, 2001).
Academically bright, Teoman studied Business Administration and Mathematics at Boğaziçi University, before transferring to Sociology. He also has a Masters in Women’s Studies from Istanbul University.
He formed his first band, Mirage, during his university years.
It took him 10 years to breakthrough, coming with Ne Ekmek Ne de Su (‘Neither Bread Nor Water’) in 1996, which helped him win Best Song in a music competition hosted by iconic music venue Roxy Music in Istanbul.
Teoman has released ten studio albums to date, his last, Eski Bir Rüya Uğruna…, released in 2015.
Teoman’s first number one album and hit singles came from ‘O’ – his second release – in 1998.
His follow-up album Onyedi (17) in 2000 again included a string of number 1 hits, propelling Teoman to win the Altın Kelebek award for Best Male Pop Star in the same year.
The rock star has always had a thing for fashion, travelling abroad to furnish his wardrobe, as well as drawing on his mother’s tailoring skills to design his own look.
He’s not big on football but supports Galatasaray.
He loves listening to David Bowie, Leonard Cohen, Radiohead, U2 and Mazhar Alanson (better known as one third of legendary Turkish pop band MFÖ).
Teoman wrote, produced, directed & starred in the movie
Teoman has made guest appearances in several TV series, such as Emret Komutanım (‘Yes Sir’) (2005) and films, including 2001 award-winning drama Filler ve Çimen (Elephants and Grass) written by Turkish Cypriot director Derviş Zaim.
In 2005, Teoman wrote, produced, directed and starred in arthouse drama Balans ve Manevra, which enjoyed moderate success at the box office.
The singer-songwriter has been married once, to Ayşe Kaya, in 2012. The couple divorced three years later. They have a daughter, who was born in December 2013.