Çiğdem Aslan

Çiğdem Aslan (pronounced ‘Cheedem’) is the fresh new voice of the Rebetiko revival, whose new take on old songs rekindles the romance of an outlawed underground culture. Rebetiko is the bitter-sweet music of an exiled underclass, sung in the hash dens and cafés of Athens and Istanbul in the turbulent '20s.

Aslan unlocks the riches and relevance of this 'Blues of the Aegean' to express the lives, loves, hopes and struggles of everyday people with passion and humour.

Hear Cigdem Aslan in session with Cerys Matthews on BBC Radio 6 Music