Rüçhan Çamay

Rüçhan Çamay — Biography

The daughter of a Circassian mother and an Albanian father, Fatma Rüçhan Çamay was raised in Ankara by her mother, a radio announcer, after her parents separated when she was one; she boarded at Maarif College, and her musical talent, spotted by a teacher, led to piano and singing training at the conservatory. She took the stage in Istanbul in 1947 and became known as one of Turkey's first jazz singers; in 1953 she travelled to the United States and appeared as a guest on a CBS programme, becoming the first Turkish artist to appear on television. Her 1976 record "Para Parra Parrra" was one of the best-selling releases of its era. In 1980 she was kidnapped for ransom along with singer Leyla Sayar, and she retired from performing after a farewell show in 1981. She married film producer Turgut Demirağ and had a daughter, actress Melike Demirağ, who was exiled abroad over her political songs following the 1980 coup while Çamay herself was barred from leaving the country. In 2007 she received a Lifetime Honour Award from the İKSV Jazz Festival. She died in Istanbul on 9 July 2025 at 94; her daughter Melike announced the death.