Demet Akalın (born 23 April 1972) is a Turkish singer and former model. Due to the popular songs she has released since the middle of the 2000s, she has become one of the most recognizable names of Turkish pop music.

Akalın, who was born in Gölcük, Kocaeli, initially decided to pursue a career in modeling and started working as a model for Neşe Erberk’s agency. She also acted in a number of motion picture films and television series in the 1990s. Simultaneously with modeling, she started singing in the casinos, and released her first studio album, Sebebim in 1996 which was not successful. With the release of the album Banane in 2004, she became well-known in Turkey. The album’s lead single, “Aşkın Açamadığı Kapı”, earned Akalın a Turkey Music Award for the Song of the Year. Kusursuz 19 (2006) received a gold certification from Mü-Yap and with the success of Dans Et (2008), she became one of the influential figures of Turkish pop music. Her album Pırlanta was the best-selling album in Turkey, in 2015. Many of her songs, including “Afedersin”, “Mucize”, “Toz Pembe” and “Hayalet”, have been number-one hits in Turkey. Other songs such as “Tecrübe”, “Çanta”, “Olacak Olacak”, “Sabıka”, “İlahi Adalet” and “Ders Olsun” have ranked among the top 5 on Turkey’s music charts.

Akalın, who is considered by music critics to have created her own style, has frequently appeared on the cover of magazines and has been the subject of numerous tabloid reports. From 2007 to 2018, she was in an on and off feud with Hande Yener, and their arguments were covered in the tabloids from time to time. After her marriages to Oğuz Kayhan in 2006 and Önder Bekensir in 2010 ended in divorce, she married Okan Kurt in 2012 and the couple’s first child Hira was born in 2014. The couple divorced in 2018. To this day, she has won two Golden Butterfly Awards and four Kral Turkey Music Awards, and has received numerous other awards and nominations.

Demet Akalın was born on 23 April 1972 to Ali and Şenay Akalın in Gölcük, Kocaeli. Her paternal family has Laz ancestry, while her maternal grandmother, Iffet Hanim (1912-2011), was of Tatar descent and her maternal grandfather was of Bosniak descent. She attended primary and secondary schools in Gölcük and eventually got enrolled in Gölcük Barbaros Hayrettin Lisesi. With the help of her mother, she took modeling courses with Yaşar Alptekin. She subsequently joined Neşe Erberk’s modeling agency. Meanwhile, she acted in a number of movies and TV series including Günlerden Pazar (1992), Tele Anahtar (1994) and Sensiz Olmaz (1994). She also appeared in a TV movie titled Hayatın Anlamı alongside Ece Sükan.

While continuing her modeling career, Akalın started to sing at casinos as well. In September 1996, her first studio album Sebebim (My Reason) was released by Elenor Plak. The songs were a mix of pop and Arabesque. Naim Dilmener wrote in his review for Hürriyet that Akalın was still inexperienced and her shaky vocals made the album poorly received. The album’s lead single, titled “Sebebim”, was written by Seda Akay and Niran Ünsal, for which a music video was released. Two other music videos were made for the songs “Asla Affedilmez” and “Sakın Vazgeçme”. In 1998, Akalın got a role as Deniz in one episode of Kanal D’s TV series Sibel.

In June 2000, her first EP Yalan Sevdan was released by Şahin Özer Müzik. A music video was made for the EP’s song “Senin Anan Güzel mi?”, which became Akalın’s first hit in Turkey and Sırma Karasu of Habertürk later praised the song as one of the earliest examples of modern Turkish pop music. Akalın’s second studio album Unuttum (I’ve Forgotten) was produced by Peker Müzik and released in June 2003. All of the new songs in the album were written by Ersay Üner and three music videos were made for the album’s lead single, “Unuttum”, as well as the songs “Gazete” and “Allahından Bul”.

In December 2004, her third album Banane (I Don’t Care) was released by Seyhan Müzik. The songs on this album were written by Serdar Ortaç and Yıldız Tilbe. The album sold 40,000 copies and eight music videos were made for the songs “Bittim”, “Aşkın Açamadığı Kapı”, “Banane”, “Vuracak”, “Bir Anda Sevmiştim”, “Tamamdır”, “Pembe Dizi” and “Adam Gibi”, the second of which was chosen as the Song of the Year at the 12th Turkey Music Awards. Critics drew similarities between “Banane”‘s music vido and Madonna’s short film “Star” made in 2002 for BMW. Akalın’s future husband, Oğuz Kayhan, appeared in the music video for “Pembe Dizi”.