Semiha Yankı

Semiha Yankı — Biography

Best remembered as the first Turkish artist to compete at the Eurovision Song Contest, Semiha Yankı carried "Seninle Bir Dakika" to the 1975 final in Stockholm, where she placed last with a mere three points from Monaco, a result many blamed on the political fallout of Turkey's recent Cyprus operation. A drawing of lots had decided that she, rather than a rival act, would carry the flag that year, and the distinction cemented her name in the country's music history regardless of the scoreboard.

Born in Istanbul on 15 January 1958 into a family of circus tightrope walkers -- her father's side from Thessaloniki, her mother's from Trabzon, and a cousin on her mother's side the poet Bedri Rahmi Eyüboğlu -- she began performing at 14 after her acrobat brother's fatal fall, backed by her mother and later spotted by Ülkü Aker, who produced her debut record. She has since built a long career as a presenter and film actress alongside singing, helped bring younger performers such as Yıldız Tilbe to public attention, and was still touring as recently as a 2026 concert in Miami.