Four well-dressed young men, aged between 17 and 22, who know how to behave and speak. They come from above-average families. However, what sets them apart from their peers is their dedication to underground rap music. Each of them has hundreds of songs. They aren't releasing their songs commercially yet, but they record them in a studio Pit10 set up in his home, under the name 'Olympos Records', and release them for free online. Their albums, especially those released on 'Mavi Karanlık' (www.mavikaranlik.com), a meeting point for underground rap music, are downloaded by tens of thousands of rap listeners. Because the songs are underground, love and politics can be approached in a 'different' way! They can even deliver 'memorandums' to ex-lovers or the prime minister! Pit10, who describes himself as a "translator who can make the deepest cries heard," has released a heart-pounding song, "Ses Çıkarma" (Make Noise). After listening to the video clip, which has been viewed over two hundred thousand times online in just one month, we decided it was time to discuss underground rap music. Here are some of the leading underground rap groups: Olympos, or Pit10, Ako, KMK, and İnfo, as they are known by their rap nicknames.

Why do you make underground rap?

Pit10: I was six years old when I first listened to rap. At that age, I used to say I was going to be a singer when I grew up. I started writing poetry at nine, and song lyrics at ten. I made my first recording at eleven. Now I'm 18. It's become more than just a hobby for me. In fact, I'm currently studying music.

KMK: I've been making underground rap for seven years. I have about 250 tracks. We make underground music because we have more freedom with the songs we release online. If these albums were released commercially, everyone might interpret them in different ways and it could cause trouble.

Ako: I have an unconventional life, so I express myself through rap. I've made four underground albums.

Info: We want to be the top quartet in Turkish rap. I'm preparing for university this year. I have a few projects in hand, and after I finish them, I'll take a break from music until university.

HAYYAM, NECIP FAZIL

Do you only release your songs online, or do you also give concerts?

Pit10: I've given countless concerts to date. We all go on stage. I've performed everywhere, from the best to the worst. From bars in the back streets of Taksim to the Rockistanbul festival, everywhere. I also gave a concert at the Miller Festival in Parkorman because I was among the top three in the competition organized by Miller.

Are you also working on an album that will be released to the market?

Ako: We're considering that too. I'm preparing an album for the market. I'll be recording at Pit10's home studio. Hopefully, one of Türkiye's best guitarists, Hasan Cihat Örter, will also be playing on the album.

KMK: I'm also preparing an album that will be released soon. I've completed the musical arrangements. The recordings will be finished in about two months.

Pit10: I'm not in a hurry to release an album. I'm still young, but my goals are big. I'm taking it slowly to make it the best it can be. This music hasn't been fully understood in Türkiye yet. They're doing it wrong; while trying to appeal to everyone, they're simplifying the lyrics too much. I'll try to appeal to everyone without simplifying it and without compromising its artistry.

Is there anyone you read and are influenced by while writing your songs?

Info: The quotes are generally about everyday life and human psychology.

Ako: I really like Amin Maalouf. I've read a lot of Omar Khayyam and Necip Fazıl. In fact, I've used some of Necip Fazıl's quotes in my songs.

KMK: In terms of ideas, the person I admire most is Aziz Nesin. I love his stories, his writings, his satires. I really like his humorous perspective on life.

THERE IS NO NEED FOR THE EU.

What do you think are the problems of youth that you address in your songs?

Pit10: One of the biggest problems facing young people is drugs. A large number of young people are using drugs, and nobody can stop it; the situation is getting worse. Are they taking America as an example or something? We all have problems; it would be better if they focused on solving their problems instead of resorting to drugs. There are huge disconnects between parents and children; if they were more understanding, these kinds of problems wouldn't exist.

AKO: Immorality is being encouraged. Actually, humans aren't inherently evil. It's the pressure of the media, the system, the rulers that drives people towards immorality. I'm studying Business Administration, but I'm ashamed of the books in my department. There's a disgusting capitalist system. I'm not left-leaning, I'm right-leaning, but I'm very much against capitalism. Competition is the most idiotic word in the world. They're constantly saying, 'Get to the forefront,' 'Take a step forward!' These things are so overwhelming. They kill a person's emotions, their romance, everything…

KMK: Of course, there is corruption and deformation, but these are not insurmountable problems if the education system and family interactions can be improved and the media's influence minimized. When Ali Kırca's tape surfaced, the media decided not to broadcast it. Just as they don't broadcast news about someone from their own community, they should maintain the same attitude regarding others.

Could joining the EU be a solution?

Pit10: I think it's ridiculous to see the European Union as a source of hope. We already have our own culture. If we join the European Union, we will become even more corrupt, we will become slaves to the West. We don't need the European Union at all; we have the strength to stand on our own two feet, we are not actually a weak country. The police can't touch separatist groups when they are carrying out actions because of the European Union.

Ako: I think a little differently. I don't believe in discrimination based on race, color, language, or religion. The European Union is a good thing in itself. But if we look at Türkiye's economic and geopolitical realities, there are very big mistakes.

Info: Our values are being lost under the influence of the EU. Perhaps the European Union can be very beneficial, but I don't think it's appropriate to appear as a nation with nothing to offer in return.

PIT10: I AM AGAINST SEPARATISM, I AM AN ATATÜRK NATIONALIST.

How did 'Making Noise' come about, Pit10?

There are always mistakes in the lives of people and countries. It's good to correct them. We're doing our best, that's what's coming out of this. I didn't make this song to be a hit. I made it from the heart. I'm not afraid to say what I think. I've expressed everything I wanted to say.

What kind of reactions did you get?

I generally receive congratulatory messages. There's a lot of interest. I receive at least five to ten emails every day.

Could you have sung this song at your concert in Parkorman as well?

I wouldn't have said it. Actually, if people had understood me the way I wanted to, I would have shouted it out loud. But people completely misunderstood me. In this piece, I absolutely did not say anything malicious to any race or position. Whether Kurdish, Turkish, Laz, or Circassian, if a person lives in this country, eats this country's bread, and says "I am proud to be a Turk," then that person is Turkish. But some people understood me as if I was insulting a race. If they live in this country and accept this, I don't see them as different from myself. My friend Ako's father is Kurdish. But we are very close. I am against separatists. If a Turk is a separatist, I am against them too. I am an Atatürk nationalist.

Will your lyrics remain this harsh in the future?

Of course, that's why I make music. I don't make music by covering things up. I always say what I want to say. But it's not like I have to deliver a message. I also make songs to entertain people. Or in an emotional song, I try to convey that emotion. That's the principle of the music I make.

You probably don't see the direction Türkiye is heading in as a good one, do you?

Our country is increasingly becoming colonized. We have a very honorable and great history. Instead of taking it as an example, people are trying to reject it. We were once a large part of the world, and now we've come to this point. Instead of people reading about this and being proud, they take it as a lesson in school and forget it after two years, directly emulating the West and becoming detached from their own roots.

How is your relationship with your family?

I love my family very much; they are very understanding. They are my biggest support in music. My family lives downstairs, and I live upstairs. I've built a studio at home. For recording, I have a booth, a very high-quality microphone, and a computer with a very high-capacity sound card. I've acquired everything needed for rap music, all at the highest level. I've been working on it for a long time, building my studio gradually. It didn't happen overnight.

Here is that song.

This is not yours or mine,

This is everyone's fight.

There are some events that...

Nobody can say it,

Nobody can do anything.

People are scared, but I'm not.

I hear cries coming from deep within

An interpreter who can announce it.

Which one of you prays for your country every Friday?

Keep quiet, bravo! Let the flag burn!

Front page of newspapers: 'Bloodless Fool'

Moles no longer stay underground,

They breathed among us.

The roads narrow in our car, just like my heart.

The Prime Minister's inner circle, ... the revolution,

They prepare the vile revolution with their own hands.

Everyone is standing there with their hands tied.

What can we do, we drank, man.

You've blown out of proportion a possibility in order to get a date.

If that doesn't work, try the second date and enter again.

Don't make a sound!

Let your country fall apart and don't say a word.

There is a fire that can be extinguished with a single drop of water, however,

Let them raise their flags on all four sides without making any noise.

You're malicious, you scoundrel.

Keep Westernizing,

Let him lie in Imralı prison, you damn hangman!

Tayyip, wake up! The country is going to ruin!

Good job, don't make a sound.

They are pushing us into war.

A little more courage,

Rise up for your country.

If justice cannot be achieved,

There is stone for your country.

The fault lies not with Kurdish citizens,

Those brainwashed bastards.

Peace, tranquility, etc.

Even if I wanted to lie now.

If you open it and look inside, it will be the opposite.

Without allowing tampering

The matter is closed.

If it continues like this, in a year or two...

The East is full of blood.

If good intentions disappear,

The psycho inside us,

These soldiers break away.

Armenia, get your act together.

As for humanity, I cannot be a human being in their eyes.

We didn't want to believe you,

Damn it!

Be smart, don't create a genocide that didn't happen.

System of a Down

Or, while remaining within the Young Turk movement,

But we'll come there fully armed.

It's not a threat, it's the truth.

With a single movement, blood will be drawn.

Those bitches in Dolapdere saw this too.

Everyone will know their place now.

Not out of resentment, but out of ideals!

Peace is won through war.

I'm not a racist, I'm Turkish.

We have not forgotten you, our Father!

We will remind those who have forgotten!