Funda Arar

Funda Arar — Biography

Funda Arar was born on 8 April 1975 in Ankara and spent part of her childhood in Muğla and Adapazarı. After training in mandolin at Istanbul Technical University's Turkish Music State Conservatory, she launched her recording career in 1999 with the album Sevgilerde, whose single "Aysel" became an immediate hit.

She followed up with Sevgiliye (2000), which included the popular "Seni Düşünürüm" and the Kıraç duet "Cesminaz", then Alagül (2002) and Sevda Yanığı (2003), featuring songs such as "Haberin Var mı?" and "Aşksız Kal". After a long hiatus she released Son Dans in 2005, and in 2008 explored Turkish classical music with Rüya, recorded with an ensemble led by Yaşar Okyay across makams ranging from Hicaz to Nihavend. Over her career she has received several honors, including a Golden Butterfly Award and a Turkey Video Music Award.

Arar has been married since 2004 to Febyo Taşel, who has produced all of her albums; the couple have a son, Aras, born in 2013. In July 2026 she publicly objected after discovering her voice had been used without permission in AI-generated recordings, calling the practice "theft of labor."