It’s Halloween night, and I’m dressed as a self-proclaimed music journalist while I make my way to Barock Sahne, where Hey Mama will be performing a show tonight. A man standing by the bar’s entrance looks at my costume with suspicion, he doesn’t seem convinced; it’s not scary enough. Okay fine, it’s not a costume. It’s me, dressed as per usual, except I really am in music journalist mode, which is a different, non-Halloween kind of scary.
A woman in a white veil and vampire teeth passes me and heads for the stage. She starts setting up the drums and I start fangirling, because drums. The vampire bride is Özge Leyla, the fully mortal drummer for Hey Mama. Moments later she is joined on stage by a she-devil, a cat, and what I can only describe as a caped goth bleeding from the mouth.
And we’re off. The devil takes her place, she presumably says hello to the gathering crowd (and there is a crowd) and before I can start feeling disappointed about my lack of Turkish skills, I hear the all-too familiar sound of James Brown’s ‘I Feel Good’, and suddenly, I do feel good. The music is nice, it’s in English, and the bar is serving appetizers, on the house. I feel really good.
The next time I see Hey Mama, is a whopping two weeks later, specifically for the purpose of this interview. It’s almost difficult to recognize them without the devil horns and cat ears. I tell them that, we share a laugh, and then we’re off. It’s röportaj zamanı, baby.
Who?
Comprising of a total of five members, Hey Mama is a Turkish girl-band that all yabangees love, for the reason that they always include a mix of popular English songs. Özge Leyla plays the drums, Dilara Çivici and Ecem Otgucuoğlu are on the guitar and bass respectively, Özge Sorgun is on the keys, and Cansu Bahadır provides vocals.
What?
“We do a lot of trendy hip-hop music, as well as some rock and pop” says Leyla (Özge). When I ask them about their influences, they say ‘Spice Girls’ in perfect unison, then realize that they all said the same thing, and burst into laughter. Other names brought up are Destiny’s Child, Beyonce and Rihanna. I ask them about their favorite songs to perform and receive a list of pop classics like Justin Timberlake’s ‘Sexy Back’, Beyonce’s ‘Crazy in Love’, and surprisingly, AC/DC’s ‘Highway to Hell’.
When?
Bassist Ecem and drummer Özge had been playing together in various bands for four years before they met and recruited keyboardist Özge , Cansu, and Dilara one by one. Hey Mama itself came into existence around half a year ago, and since then they have been performing all over the city of Istanbul.
Where?
The band performs consistently every Thursday, 21:30 PM at Barock Sahne in Maslak and every Wednesday at Mask, in Beyoğlu.
What’s it like being a female musician in Istanbul?
“It’s difficult to make a living out of being a musician here. It’s not difficult being a musician; you can find lots of places to play, there are so many pubs and clubs. But it’s hard to earn good money from that,” says Özge.
This is why all the girls, barring Cansu, who is a student, provide music lessons as their day job. Being a budding musician in Turkey, or really anywhere in the world, isn’t the most lucrative profession.
“Being a woman in music is really an advantageous thing for us, especially in Turkey because there aren’t a lot of women musicians here, so when you do something good, people appreciate it,” Özge adds.
How do people respond to you doing covers, as well as many being in English?
“Our generation listens to a lot of American music, which is why they enjoy it when we do those songs. But of course, Turkish songs are always appreciated and enjoyed, maybe even more so. As for covers, there’s always a place for covers in Istanbul. But we’ve noticed that whenever we do originals, people really like it and encourage us to do more,” explains Özge.
Speaking of which, Hey Mama originals: Can we expect them? Are they coming? What do they sound like?
Turns out, the band is currently working on two original singles, set to come out within the next couple of months. One of them is described as pop rock, while the other involves a fair bit of rap.
Wait… did you just say rap?
“Yes, we rap too sometimes” says Özge. I look towards Cansu and nod my head at her, to ask if she’s the one who raps, and she nods back in confirmation. Guys, they rap as well. I’m still in awe several days later as I write this.
Would you change anything about your journey so far?
“Maybe skipping some of the more boring songs we did?” Özge says, looking around at the other girls, who all laugh at this in agreement. After a brief consultation with them, Özge, now looking serious again, says that they’re all really happy with their current journey, and wouldn’t really change anything.
Fair enough. What advice would you give to others who are starting out?
“I would say they have to work hard, take this seriously, and practice a lot. People see this as a hobby sometimes, but if you want to become a successful musician, then you need to see this a serious profession,” says Özge, adding that you need to invest something to get something in return – adding, “Start early and practice a lot.”
Cansu adds, “There are not many women in the industry, and every time I tell people that I perform on stage with five other women, they are always very intrigued and supportive. So we must use that to or advantage.”
In case you haven’t already, you need to go see Hey Mama play live. Catch them every Thursday at 21:30 at Barock Sahne. Be sure to follow them on Instagram for more updates.
