One of Turkiye’s biggest stars of hip-hop and trap music, Ezhel will be performing for one night only in London at the start of 2024. The rapper, who made his name as one of the faces of Turkiye’s counter-culture, using his fresh lyrical style to reflect Anatolian city life, will hit London on the back of several sell out tours in Europe.
Ankara-born Ezhel, 32, came to prominence in 2017 with his experimental debut album Müptezhel”, in which he successfully blends trap, hip-hop and reggae sounds.
At the time, this type of music was not mainstream in his native Turkiye, but Ezhel’s style became a hit with millennials eager to find a Turkish equivalent to popular western rappers. The album quickly rose up the internet charts and Ezhel found a growing fanbase across the country.
In June 2018, he released his experimental trap track Kazıdık Tırnaklarla [We Scratched with Our Nails], which was recorded in Berlin. Ezhel not only scored in the charts with the song, but it also marked his ascent from domestic to international artist.
His next single Felaket [“Catastrophe”], released in the first week of February 2019, also charted and paved the way for Ezhel to go on an 18-date sell-out European tour.
Later that year, Ezhel started to release music featuring collaborations with diverse artists, including top Dutch-Turkish rapper Murda. Their track Aya, set to an infectious Afro-Latin-Trap beat, became a big chart success.
His follow-up, a collaboration album named “Lights Out” with leading German-Turkish rapper Ufo361, was critically acclaimed and garnered huge streaming figures with songs “Wir sind Kral” and “YKKE”.
In 2020, Ezhel and Murda released their seminal album Made in Turkey, which spawned a string of hit songs and cemented their places as top European rappers.
While spending more time in Berlin, Ezhel has continued to collaborate with artists like Luciano, Summer Cem, Haftbefehl, and Gentleman, extending his appeal abroad while continuing to resonate strongly with his Turkish fanbase, despite essentially living in exile due to fears he could be arrested and jailed if he returns to Turkiye after falling foul of the conservative authorities in his homeland.
To date, Ezhel has scored 16 number 1’s in the Turkish charts, one Top10 and five Top 50 hits in the German charts and had seven songs feature in the Top 200 Global charts.
When asked in an interview last year about when he will next perform in the British capital, Ezhel replied: “Getting a UK visa is harder than coming back to Turkiye and being free” [“Birleşik Krallık vizesi almak, Türkiye’ye geri dönüp özgür olmaktan daha zor”].
The good news is Ezhel has a confirmed date to play in London. Later this year, he will embark on a six-date tour of Germany and after the New Year, he will visit the UK for a concert at Indigo, which replaces his planned December 2020 gig at the same venue.
CONCERT DETAILS
Title: Ezhel Live in London
Date: 20 January 2024
Time: Doors open 7pm, Show starts at 8.30pm
Venue: Indigo at The O2, 205 Peninsula Square, London SE10 0ES
Admission: Prices vary, from £75 to £87, including all booking fees. There is a limit of 6 tickets per card holder for this event.
Tickets: click here to buy online from the venue
