Bab L’ Bluz’s Yousra Mansour guests on BBC Music Life podcast

Turkish singer and saz player Derya Yildirim from Grup Simsek chats to Yousra Mansour, Hasan Nakhleh and Merve Erdem about how they work in the studio, what their songs tell us about tradition, and their biggest inspirations in the development of their work.

Merve Erdem is a Turkish multi-disciplinary artist, born in Istanbul and now based in London. She writes, sings and produces multi-media visuals for her group, Kit Sebastian who, last year, released their debut album Mantra Moderne.

And finally, Hasan Nakhleh is a keyboardist and guitarist who’s one half of TootArd; a band comprised of brothers from the Golan Heights. The band are described as “unleash[ing] a disco whirlwind that pays homage to the Middle Eastern dancefloor scenes of the 1980’s”.

Together, they discuss how they operate in the studio, what their songs tell us about tradition, and their biggest inspirations in the development of their work.

Following the chat, Merve Erdem from Kit Sebastian shares her Turkish Women playlist — a selection of songs and sounds from women who represent different tendencies and realities of Turkish music in the 1970s and 1980s. Expect stories of dancing, heartbreak, and horror.

Download the Music Life podcast via the BBC website, or find it on your preferred podcast service.