The Singles Jukebox

Turkish Got Talent contestant graduates to the pop charts…

[Video]
[5.83]

Leah Isobel: I love the cascading melodies and the way Aleyna Tilki uses her voice. She sings with a bit of a slippery quality, a waver that counters her strength. The song’s windswept soundscape is pretty but static; the whole thing is rather slight. It’s like a sudden feeling that blows away in the wind.
[7]

Ashley John: The instrumental interludes in between the verses and the chorus give this track more excitement than Aleyna does, but it sounds like she’s aware and secedes power intentionally. That back and forth in “Sen Olsan Bari” makes for a surprisingly fascinating TV talent show produced pop song, especially after multiple listens. 
[6]

Iain Mew: It’s cool to hear the same marshmallowy synth textures as are all over Anglophone pop music — there’s even a pulsing trop house bit, too — put to use to such a different sound, especially when the results are this lovely and haunting.
[7]

Ryo Miyauchi: Despite the style bringing some warm, inviting beats, moombahton has become a popular platform in pop to express heartbreak in the past few years. Aleyna Tilki’s Turkish takes joins the list where not only are the glistening groove and the vocal-like beat hook a familiar staple but also her plead for her feelings to be toyed. The digital wheeze before the beat drop adds a nice touch like a watermark that this is a re-fitted yet unique take on an ubiquitous sound.
[6]

Anjy Ou: The beat is too plodding to be danceable, and the singing lacks genuine emotion.Technically solid, but doesn’t move me. 
[5]

Stephen Eisermann: “Sen Olsan Bari”‘s ability to so seamlessly incorporate a Middle-Eastern guitar riff into the chorus is it’s strongest asset. I imagine that people hailing from Turkey, Syria, and other Middle Eastern countries enjoying this in the same way my family would enjoy a good trumpet or Spanish guitar. The problem, then, is that these lyrics (and the subsequent translation I found) don’t do much except repeat a simple premise about how Aleyna could be the girl that some guy is looking for, but there really isn’t much to go off of. Also, she sings the song pretty straightforward without any vocal tics or intricacies — at times, it even comes across as robotic. When listening to music in languages I do not know, I turn primarily to composition, singing style, and emotional conviction for my reviews, but this only managed to deliver on one front.
[4]