Pop-Islam: conflict, and change in religious music in Turkey

Abstract

Since the early 1980s there have been a steady growth in the production and consumption of a new pop-Islamic musical market in turkey, and today the industry has become massive. Artists such as Abdurrahman Önul and Hasan Dursun have released dozens of albums, and have drawn throngs of adoring fans to their neo-musical representations of the faith. The question is whether this phenomenon should be seen is a tool of emerging Islamic politics in current Turkey; or it should be evaluated as a reflection of a structural aspect of globalization, namely the market economy, or possibly both. Islamic pop artists combine modern popular styles, such as hip-hop and rock and roll, with rhetoric of faith and piety. Because of their willingness to incorporate new styles into religious music, performers of Islamic pop often find themselves at odds with the practitions of older styles. In this presentation, I will examine the music market in Turkey, highlighting the overlaps and contrasts between older religious musics and both secular and Islamic pop, examining from political, and economic perspectives.