jawnbc | Why we love Sertab

Having secured their first win in 2003, Turkey got to hos the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest. For most of Europe, Sertab Erener was something of a novelty. Her victory with "Every Way that I Can", and its fushion of Turkish pop, electro and a wee bit of hip hop was certainly unique--and maybe a bit gimmicky. For many ESC fans, however, it was the first time the best song and singer had won in over a decade.

But Sertab--classically trained, multilingual, and signed to a record deal with Sony Music--is no gimmick. Aside from winning for Turkey, she won for modern, secular, euro-ambitious Turkey. When asked to enter the Eurovision she insisted she picks the song, the choreography and that it be sung entirely in English. The whole package was very much tongue-in-cheek, third wave feminist. Sertab's "role" was that of a concubine in Topkapi Palace--one who feels herself slipping down the pecking (or poking, as it were) order. So she uses what she has to convince her master otherwise. She shakes its, wiggles it, and even fights off the other girls. She gets involved in a (metaphoric) tug-o-war with the other ladies. She gets fierce--and gets her way.

All in 3 minutes. Pretty fucking fabulous--and it would've probably romped to victory if the Latvians hadn't messed up every other shot during her performance.

So in 2004 Sertab gets to open the Contest with a reprise. And there is mounting pressure in Turkey for her to do something more traditional...something that will appease the more conservative (and Muslim) sectors of society. Sertab isn't having any of it--and threatens to skip the show if she doesn't again get carte blanche.

So she does her reprise, but in gold lamé--and with the 4 gayest boys in Turkey playing the rest of the "harem".. And Then she sings the shit out of a song from her English language début album. Just so Europe knows she's a muthafuckin' artist...