One of the most powerful voices of soul and modern R&B, Seal is known for his renditions of popular hits such as “Killer”, “Crazy” and Grammy-awarded “Kiss from A Rose”. Born in 1963 in London, Seal was educated as an architect and modelled for a while. His silky voice and his unique singing style quickly brought him international fame in the 1990s, and he became one of the most popular British soul vocalists of the decade. Produced by David Foster, Soul, his sixth studio album, features interpretations of soul and jazz standards.

The artist is expected to give a silky smooth concert to his Turkish fans with his band, which consists of Steve Sidelnyk on drums, Mark Summerlin on guitars and backing vocals, Marcus Brown on bass, keys and backing vocals, Gus Isidore on guitar, Carol Jarvis on trombone and backing vocals, Sarah Field on baritone saxophone, trumpet, backing vocals, Georgina Bromilow on trumpet and backing vocals and Katie Samways on saxophone and backing vocals.

Seal is also well-konown for his personal life, as he is married to one of the most popular Victoria’s Secret angels, Heidi Klum.

On June 11, 2009, Seal, on tour with “Soul,” said, “It is nice to be in newspapers and magazines for something other than my marriage.”

He said his marriage may take away the attention, but doesn’t detract from what he loves doing: making music.

On Oct. 5, 2009, nearly five years after the couple married, Klum filed a petition to change her name to Heidi Samuel.

SEAL
19 July Monday / 21:00
Cemil Topuzlu Açık Hava Sahnesi

Tickets available at biletix.com

The group will hit the stage Saturday and present its last album, “The Dance.”

British electronica band Faithless, consisting of Maxi Jazz, Sister Bliss and Rollo is best known for their dance songs (“Insomnia”, “God Is a DJ” and “We Come 1″). Faithless have recorded several albums offering a wide variety and blend of styles. During their career they have sold over 12 million records worldwide.

The band was formed in early 1995, and their debut single “Salva Mea (Save Me)” was released in July that year.

Jazz acted as a vocalist, whilst Bliss constructed most of the music herself electronically, but also played the piano, violin, saxophone and bass guitar. Rollo heads and produces the band.

The group had remarkable success first in the United Kingdom and then throughout the world. Meanwhile, the lead female vocals for many of the group’s songs are performed by Pauline Taylor, who also performed lead vocals for singles by Rollo, namely “Rollo Goes Mystic” and “Rollo Goes Spiritual.”

Faithless have released six albums of their own work, the first four gaining moderate success on the U.K. Albums Chart. The albums are “Reverence,” “Sunday 8PM,” “Outrospective” and “No Roots.”

Maxi Jazz brought out an album before the formation of Faithless and also worked on pirate radio. He also collaborated with Faithless founding member Jamie Catto on his new project 1 Giant Leap, guesting on a song with Robbie Williams.

The single, “Not Going Home,” was released on May 4, 2010, while “The Dance” was issued on May 16, 2010.

Tickets available at biletix.com

date : 17.07.2010 18:00:00
venue : Küçükçiftlik Park

Ticket prices
Front Stage: 180,00 TL
General Admission: 80,50 TL

Event information
18:00 Kapı Açılış & Tutan (DJ Set)
20:00 Bedük
21:30 Faithless

This multi-storey pub hosts a range of live music acts including rock, pop, metal and indie. DJ’s also feature. This unique bar is lined with artwork and jesters. The upstairs balcony, with glass floor and seating, is popular.

With its classy decor that features funky art work and caricature-like depictions of the court jester hailing from a deck of playing cards, coupled with the chic Hard Rock Cafe styled, guitar-shaped bar, and a piano table, this bar-cum-live entertainment venue will definitely redefine your idea of ’swank’.

This venue is composed of three parts: the main area, lounge area in the back with chairs and tables, and a third balcony floor with a glass floor. Teoman, Kangroove, Chantage and Rebel Moves are among the bands who perform on a regular basis at Balans. There is also a happy hour every evening from 19.00-22.00. Additionally, Tonique, which opened within Balans, features live DJs often.

Also worth mentioning is that this venue has a balcony seating area that boasts of a glass floor! Besides the upbeat ambiance, Jolly Joker Balans also features impressive DJ sets and excellent live performances by rock, indie, alternative, and metal music loving soloists and bands.

Check website for event timings and additional details.

Address:
Jolly Joker Balans
Beyoğlu Balo Sokak 22 Numara
Tel: +90 212 249 07 49
Fax : +90 212 251 77 63
info@jollyjokerbalans.com

More info at www.jollyjokerbalans.com

The Istanbul cafe chain House Cafe opened their second boutique hotel, after attaining great success with the House Café brand, three Turkish entrepreneurs have teamed up with Irish private equity firm Kerten, aiming to spread the concept to boutique hotels in Turkey and abroad. The second ‘House Hotel’ was launched in Istanbul’s posh Nişantaşı district on Friday. Speaking to journalists, the entrepreneurs say they plan to launch three new boutique hotels in Istanbul next year.

The group has been running apart hotels and luxury hotels in Istanbul, first in Galatasaray and now in the Nişantaşı neighborhood. The group is planning to launch three new boutique hotels in Istanbul next year.

Welcoming all Istanbul lovers, House Cafe Chairman Baltacıoğlu said the cafe started its journey nearly eight years ago now has 10 cafes in Istanbul and one franchise in Ankara.

“Afterwards, we started our first hotel, the House Hotel Galatasaray,” he said. “We realized that there was a great growth potential in the concept of boutique hotels in Turkey.”

The company is planning to apply the unique design and concept of House Cafes to House Hotels and build new boutique hotels around the world.

Prices at the House Hotel start from 180 euros a night and rise upward of 450 euros.

Address:
The House Hotel
Abdi Ipekci Cad. No: 34
Nisantasi – Istanbul 34367

Reservations: +902122443400

www.thehousehotel.com

An unusually striking voice, an arresting show, a modern time legend: the one and only Grace Jones is finally in İstanbul! A Jamaican-born contralto, Grace Jones was always in the spotlight with her outstanding physique, original, innovative and avant-garde look, androgynous stage persona, amazing vocal performance, and stage shows. A style icon from her 1977 debut album Portfolio to last year’s Hurricane, her discography is replete with works such as Island Life and Nightclubbing. A performance not to be missed!

Grace is a singer and a model, and has also appeared in movies – most notably as May Day in James Bond movie A View to a Kill. She is known for being eccentric, and loves to play up to her image.

Grace Jones would also come to popularize the “Flat Top” hairstyle, by wearing it at many of her concerts in the 1970s, worn by numerous black men in the 1980s. Her first album cover to feature this hairstyle was 1980’s “Warm Leatherette”.

Grace practiced both recording and acting careers, although her acting often overshadowed her musical output – except in Europe where her profile as a recording artist was much higher. Her strong visual presence was an advantage to her music videos and concert tours. In her concert performances, she adopted various personas and wore outlandish costumes, particularly during her years with Goude. One such performance was at the Paradise Garage in 1985, for which she collaborated with visual artist Keith Haring for her costume. Haring painted her body in tribal patterns and fitted her with wire armor.

Even though Jones is known for her music career, which mainly focused on disco music, her flamboyant visibility always drew attention.

The 62-year-old has been famous for over three decades, and has learnt a lot about being in the public eye in that time. She is understood to be seeing a man who is several years younger than her, and she was spotted holidaying with the hunk earlier this year.

Grace has refused to confirm or deny the romance, revealing she has personal reasons for being so secretive.

Tickets available at biletix.com

Those who love jazz will enjoy a concert that promises cool breezes from the Bosphorus and a memorable start to a splendid festival.

Lisa Ekdahl’s music was the hottest thing in Istanbul, playing her first concert in Turkey for the 17th International Istanbul Jazz Festival on Tuesday, the Swedish singer lit up the stage at the Marmara Hotel Esma Sultan.

One of the most famous pianists and composers of cotemporary jazz music, Chick Corea and his Freedom Band, will be on stage on July 7 for the first open-air concert at the Cemil Topuzlu Open Air Theatre.

The 16-time Grammy award-winning artist will be accompanied by Kenny Garrett, considered one of jazz’s most competent saxophonists. Legendary crooner Tony Bennet will also perform at the Open Air Theatre on July 15, with a support performance by the Kerem Görsev Trio.

Grace Jones is another of the international superstars performing at the Open Air Theatre. Renowned for her striking voice, arresting shows, Jones is a modern legend with a career spanning musical styles from disco to rock and will play in Istanbul for the first time ever. Uncompromising in her image and her dashing attitude, Jones will perform July 16.

One of the most powerful voices of contemporary music, known for his renditions of popular hits, Seal will also play the Open Air Theatre July 19. Seal proved to be one of the most powerful voices in modern R&B with his latest album “Soul.”

During the festival there will be also street concerts all over Istanbul with the support of the U.S. Consulate. This year the Panorama Jazz Band from New Orleans will be among the acts singing in the streets of the city.

Tickets for the festival are available at Biletix.

Organizers are also releasing a special Istanbul Jazz Festival CD featuring works by artists performing at the festival.

More info at www.iksv.org

Representatives from the sectors of ready-wear, fabric, denim and accessories from several countries including Germany, Greece, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Poland and France will attend the fair where 2011 collections of several brands will be exhibited.

More than 10,000 people are expected to visit the Istanbul Fashion Fair.

Being one of the main actors in the world clothing and textile industry, Turkey welcomes the whole world to Istanbul twice a year for a unique experience at the Istanbul Fashion Fair.

The textile and accessories section complementing the ready-wear sector is one of the remarkable novelties for trade visitors. The designer’s section, on the other hand, continues to attract attention from fashion professionals worldwide.

CNR EXPO, as the main fair ground for CNR Holding, is a huge fair ground with 150,000 square meters of enclosed area. CNR EXPO, with its huge venue, is not only the biggest fair platform in the Eastern Europe-Balkan region and the Middle East, but is also the most developed fair ground in the region with its high-tech infrastructure.

As the festival will bring different cultures together, it will play an important role in expressing the cultural beauty of tango and the country of Argentina and aims to support the dance art and its practitioners all around the world.

Last year representatives from 46 different countries attended the festival and a similar number are expected this year, including world-famous tango trainers, dancers and orchestras.

Turkish Orchestra La Ideal works to specialize on being a festival orchestra. All members of the orchestra are master teachers of their areas. They all have deep knowledge and performence experience of classical and world music.

Top international DJs will perform such as: Manuk Colakyan ( USA – Turkey ), Christos Pateropoulos ( Greece ), Abdulfattah Yaghmour ( Jordan ), Utku Küley ( Turkey )

The festival is hosted at some historic venues such as the Binbirdirek Cistern which was constructed in the fourth century as the second biggest water reservoir in Istanbul after Bazalika Cistern (Yerebatan Palace).

Complete list of venues are:
Adile Sultan Palace (Summer house built by Sultan Abdulaziz in 1856) – Indoor
Historical Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University – Outdoor
Historical Dalyan Club (Old manestry back to 1800s) – Outdoor
1001 Direk Sarnici/Cistern (In 330 A.C. Built by Roman Senate Philoxenus)-Indoor

More info at www.istanbultangofestival.com

7th International İstanbul Tango Festival Official Trailer – 3 from Aydogan Arkis on Vimeo.

The cosmopolitan city of Istanbul is named 2010 European Capital of Culture and named as the best place to be in 2010.

A tally of major concerts are coming to Istanbul in 2010. If early trends are any indication, 2010 may be the best year for major concerts and events in Istanbul yet.

So if you’re going to Istanbul in 2010, these are the dates to put in your agenda now.

Top Istanbul Events in 2010

• Istanbul International Film Festival
  This year, through April 18, The eagerly awaited 29th International Istanbul Film Festival will host more than 200 films in 23 categories.
• David Helfgott April 6 – 8
  One of the most important pianists of the world adopted the life of Oscar-winning movie Shine, David Helfgott is coming to Istanbul to play the piano concerto on 6 and 8 April.
• David Guetta April 10
  The world-wide respected DJ David Guetta will play for all dance music lovers in Istanbul on April 10 Saturday night organized by UNILIFE.
• Grandmaster Flash April 10
  One of the pioneers of hip-hop DJing, cutting, and mixing. Grandmaster Flash was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007, becoming the first hip hop/rap artist to be so honored. A legend will perform on April 10 at GHETTO.
• WWE – Smackdown! April 18
  Sunday April 18, 2010 World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) with the most famous wrestlers from the team in Turkey!
• Istanbul hip hop festival April 25
  The first Istanbul hip hop festival will be held this year in Istanbul with the 2010 Hip Hop Festival for Turkey’s Hip Hop culture on Sunday April 25.
• SEPULTURA April 27
  Brazilian heavy metal band SEPULTURA will be in Istanbul on April 27th, 2010 for only one concert as part of their 25th World Tour.
• Istanbul International Puppet Festival May 4 – 16
  The annual International Istanbul Puppet Festival hosts many famous national and international puppeteers from as far as Taiwan and Brazil and will run from May 4 to 16.
• Istanbul International Theater Festival May 10
  The 17th International Istanbul Theater Festival is set to begin on May 10. Organized by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts, or İKSV, the festival will continue through June 10.
• Dany Brilliant May 10
  France’s most famous pop singer Dany Brillant, will give a concert in Istanbul on May 10.
• Harry Connick Jr. May 18
  Famous singer, pianist, song-writer, and actor Harry Connick Jr., will meet his fans in İstanbul for the first time on Tuesday night May 18 at 20.30 at İstanbul Congress Centre in Harbiye.
• Nouvelle Vague May 18
  Enjoy Punk and New Wave songs in an entirely new form, Nouvelle Vague, Bossa Nova, jazz and ’60s pop of the audience is invited to an amazing and surprising journey through time at Babylon on May 18.
• Akon May 21
  Akon has had 6 Grammy Awards nominations and has produced many hits for artists such as Lady Gaga, Colby O’Donis and Leona Lewis. AKON will meet with his Turkish fans on 21 May.
• Chill-Out Festival 23 May
  Chill-Out Festival will be held at Kemer Golf & Country Club with a wide musical spectrum such as, jazz trip-hop, Latin. 12 hours of continuous music with Caravan Palace Orchestra, Bonobo, Tunng, Alex Cuba Band, Club des Belugas, & Mishkin Palov and Lucky Elephant will present at the scene.
• 2010 Formula 1 Turkey Grand Prix May 28-29-30
  Istanbul is undoubtedly one of the most unique cities on the Formula One calendar this year on 30 May 2010
• Bob Dylan May 31
  Bob Dylan is the greatest composers of modern times and is coming to Istanbul again after 21 years, to give a special concert on May 31, 2010.
• Eric Clapton June 13
  Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood will perform on June 13 at Santral Istanbul, a venue on the Golden Horn campus of Bilgi University.
• Jean Michel Jarre
  Multifaceted artist Jean Michel Jarre is coming to Istanbul with his 2010 Tour on June 15 at Turkcell Kuruçeşme Arena.
• Sonisphere Istanbul June 25-27
  Sonisphere Istanbul features the greatest rock bands in the world will be held June 25-27 at the İnönü Stadium in Dolmabahçe.
• Metallica June 25
  Metallica will perform in Istanbul at Sonisphere Istanbul June 25-27
• Rammstein June 26
  Rammstein will perform in Istanbul at Sonisphere Istanbul June 25-27
• Megadeth June 26
  Megadeth will perform in Istanbul at Sonisphere Istanbul June 25-27
• U2 360 Tour Istanbul September 6
  U2 360 Tour Istanbul will be held this summer at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium on Sept. 6.
• Rihanna June 3
  Rihanna is coming to Istanbul for the first time, to perform with her Last Girl on Earth Tour on June 3.
• Lady GaGa June 15
  Lady GaGa is coming to Istanbul this year to perform on June 15th at Kurucesme Arena in Istanbul.
• Unirock July 2
  Hosted bands like TESTAMENT, OPETH, ARCH ENEMY, KREATOR, DARK TRANQUILLITY, PARADISE LOST and AMON AMARTH, Unirock Open Air Festival once again welcomes trash and metal bands in Istanbul on July 2.
• Massive Attack July 13
  Legendary creator of trip-hop group Massive Attack is coming back with a great performance on July 13 2010.
• Armin van Buuren July 16
  Armin van Buuren No. 1 DJ in the world will perform in Istanbul on July 16.
• Faithless July 17
  Faithless Istanbul concert will be held on July 17 experience a great live performance. Faithless known for their hits “Why Go,” “Insomnia,” “God Is A DJ” and “We Come 1″, spend four years long on a new album “The Dance” and will meet with their Turkish fans in Istanbul on July 17.
• Eros Ramazzotti July 17
  Ramazotti released his new album Alien Radi pressure” In 2009 and will perform in Istanbul on July 7 as part of his tour.
• Efes Pilsen One Love Festival 9 July 19 – 20
  De La Soul, The Whitest Boy Alive and Wild Beasts will perform at Efes Pilsen One Love Festival on.
• The Cranberries July 22
  The Cranberries became one of the more successful groups to emerge from the pre-Britpop U.K. indie scene of the early ’90s. Led by vocalist Dolores O’Riordan they will give a concert on July 22 in Istanbul.
• Ozzy Osbourne September 30
  Rock legend Ozzy Osbourne will come to Turkey this year, among the names. World’s most radical heavy metal and rock group. Ozzy Osbourne will perform in Istanbul on September 30 at BKM Kurucesme Arena.

Leave a comment below if you know any other top events in Istanbul for 2010.

Rihanna will stay at W Hotel Istanbul, one of Istanbul’s most luxurious hotels. The hotel is the “Official Lodging Sponsor” and will host the world’s most popular R & B and pop singer Rihanna from June 2 to 4. Rihanna will be paying 10,000 euros per night for the room and also her team has booked 24 rooms at the hotel.

Rihanna will earn $650,000 with her “Last Girl on Earth” concert performance in Istanbul.

The world-famous star backstage concert demands are quite modest, Rihanna requests honey, mint tea, lime, potato chips, popcorn and a bottle of red wine in her concert riders.

The 22-year-old Umbrella singer is currently on her Last Girl On Earth tour – which began three weeks ago in Europe. Rihanna just performed in Greece, where she sang at Karayskaki stadium leaving all of her fans breathless with her appearance.

Rihanna kicked off her “Last Girl On Earth Tour” in Europe. Rihanna’s tour getting rave reviews and showing that she is one of the greatest artists of this moment. Her concerts are spectacular and would make Madonna and Lady Gaga jealous.

During the concert Rihanna has dancers, acrobats, soldiers and terrifying monsters. The singer herself appears on stage in one after another extravagant outfit.

The thousands of Turkish fans are up for a spectacular evening.

The world-famous Barbadian R&B recording artist and model, received several accolades, including the 2007 World Music Awards for World’s Best-Selling Pop Female Artist and Female Entertainer of the Year, as well as the 2008 American Music Awards for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist and Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist. Rihanna’s concert in Istanbul is sponsored by Garanti Bonus Card.

Rihanna’s new album, Rated R, was released in November 2009. Its first three singles, “Russian Roulette”, “Hard” and “Rude Boy” peaked within the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. Her third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad (2007), peaking at number two on the Billboard 200, featured five top ten hits including three US number one hit singles—”Umbrella”, “Take a Bow” and “Disturbia”—and the worldwide hit “Don’t Stop the Music”. The album was nominated for nine Grammy Awards, winning Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for “Umbrella,” which features Jay-Z.

The Last Girl On Earth tour started in Europe and will touch down in North America this summer, and Rihanna has invited Ke$ha and Nicki Minaj along for the ride!

The 22-year-old “Rock Star” singer explained the name of her tour recently. She told, “I like to think about myself as the Last Girl on Earth because sometimes people make decisions based on the outlook of others and, you know, to me, my life is my life. It’s my world, and I’m going to live it the way I want to. That’s how I think about everything, that way I’m focused on me, and my work. It’s a really narrow space, a focus.”

In a recent interview with AOL, the singer told fans they can expect a big upgrade in comparison to her previous tours. “We’ve never done a tour to this capacity,” she said. “The production is unbelievable and the costumes, we just took it to a whole new level. Visually and sonically it’s going to be a big step up from the last time. We just keep growing, and this time it is a massive production that I cannot wait for.”

The tour adds just another notch in the belt for these ladies’ busy schedules. Most recently, Rihanna stopped by the Kids’ Choice Awards to perform a medley of hits, including current single “Rude Boy.” The songstress is scheduled to perform on Wednesday’s “American Idol” results show.

The Last Girl on Earth Tour will be the perfect place for on-the-rise artists Ke$ha and Minaj to showcase their material. Ke$ha graced the “Idol” stage with 3OH!3 to perform “Blah, Blah, Blah.” Minaj just released the music video for her long-awaited first single, “Massive Attack.”

If you’re in Europe, check out her tour dates below.
If you’re not in Europe don’t worry – she’ll be announcing dates in the US and Asia soon.

# Friday, April 16 – Sportpaleis – Antwerp, Belgium
# Saturday, April 17 – Gelredome – Arnhem, The Netherlands
# Monday, April 19 – Hallenstadion – Zurich, Switzerland
# Tuesday, April 20 – Halle Tony Garnier – Lyon, France
# Wednesday, April 21 – Le Dome – Marseille, France
# Friday, April 23 – Festhalle – Frankfurt, Germany
# Sunday, April 25 – Oberhausen Arena – Oberhausen, Germany
# Tuesday, April 27 – Arena – Geneva, Switzerland
# Wednesday, April 28 – Bercy – Paris, France
# Saturday, May 1 – Colorline – Hamburg, Germany
# Sunday, May 2 – O2 – Berlin, Germany
# Tuesday, May 4 – Rokhal – Luxembourg
# Friday, May 7 – LG Arena – Birmingham, UK
# Saturday, May 8 – Echo Arena – Liverpool, UK
# Monday, May 10 – O2 – London, UK
# Tuesday, May 11 – O2 – London, UK
# Thursday, May 13 – Arena – Sheffield, UK
# Friday, May 14 – Nottingham Arena – Nottingham, UK
# Sunday, May 16 – MEN Arena – Manchester, UK
# Monday, May 17 – Newcastle Arena – Newcastle, UK
# Wednesday, May 19 – Glasgow SECC – Glasgow, UK
# Thursday, May 20 – Glasgow SECC – Glasgow, UK
# Saturday, May 22 – O2 – Dublin, Ireland
# Monday, May 24 – Odyssey – Belfast, Northern Ireland
# Wednesday, May 26 – O2 – Dublin, Ireland
# Sunday, May 30th – Bloomfield Stadium – Tel Aviv, Israel
# Tuesday, June 1 – Karaiskaki Stadium – Athens, Greece
# Thursday, June 3 – Turkcell Kurucesme Arena – Istanbul, Turkey
# Saturday, June 5 – Rock in Rio Festival – Madrid, Spain

Tickets available at biletix

More info on Rihanna’s website at rihannanow.com