Derya Yildirim

Derya Yıldırım is a singer and multi-instrumentalist currently based in Berlin. In recent years she has become one of the leading figures bringing Anatolian folk music to a contemporary audience across the world.

Born and raised in Hamburg, Derya learned piano, guitar, ud, saxophone, and bağlama from an early age. She studied at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg (2013–2016) and then transferred to Universität der Künste Berlin to specialize in bağlama with <a href="spotify:artist:2n6C5DUYrFtBDsOJuioFkG" data-name="Taner Akyol">Taner Akyol</a>, graduating in 2020.
With her band <a href="spotify:artist:2Y0SH69uxHrHrjiZCuTSaT" data-name="Derya Yıldırım &amp; Grup Şimşek">Derya Yıldırım &amp; Grup Şimşek</a> , she has released the successful <a href="spotify:album:1GntqXjpN10NFBuayFWAGh" data-name="Nem Kaldi">Nem Kaldi</a> EP (2017), the albums <a href="spotify:album:2tD4hA5ynRsPiQmrAUPxAe" data-name="Dost 1">Dost 1</a> (2021) and <a href="spotify:album:4AqNq8liYqYhoOKBHbUsZu" data-name="Dost 2">Dost 2</a> (2022), and their latest album <a href="spotify:album:5l7ypUMco5BLsIYBjIYWay" data-name="Yarın Yoksa">Yarın Yoksa</a> (2025, Big Crown Records) produced by Grammy-winning producer Leon Michels (<a href="spotify:artist:0cLrgpG3pW4MX4nD8h6qCc" data-name="El Michels Affair">El Michels Affair</a>).

Derya also composed <a href="spotify:album:5K01Ah05g9jxl5l6j5hgiJ" data-name="Die Möllner Briefe (Original Documentary Soundtrack)">Die Möllner Briefe (Original Documentary Soundtrack)</a> , the film score for &#34;Die Möllner Briefe&#34; (engl. The Moelln Letters) which premiered at the Berlinale 2025.

She brings her modern approach to Anatolian folk music to stages ranging from clubs to theaters and cinemas, and collaborates with ensembles such as <a href="spotify:artist:1iVYBsAuXpphPzqD1PQLKK" data-name="Ensemble Resonanz">Ensemble Resonanz</a> on projects like &#34;Derya’s Songbook&#34;. Since 2024, she has also shared her expertise as a bağlama lecturer at Germany’s Popakademie Baden-Württemberg. In her own words: “The bağlama belongs on the main stages — not as a niche instrument, but as a natural part of the contemporary music landscape.&#34;