Vedat Yıldırım, one of the founders of music groups Bajar and Kardeş Türküler, shared on his social media account on 7 November 2021 that they were banned from singing as Bajar band at the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) rally titled “Call to Democracy” in Istanbul Çerkezköy at the last minute and without any official justification.
According to what Yıldırım reported to Ezgi Sivrikaya from the Gazete Duvar, all the preparations for the concert to be held at the rally were completed, and the sound system was installed. He stated that when they were on their way to the rally area, they were informed that ‘they are not allowed to sing at the rally,’ and when they arrived at the rally area, they sang their songs without music, without mode, and as a cappella.
Yıldırım also stated: “It was a ridiculous incident, it was not even clear what it is. After all, music is being played back in the meeting area, but they did not allow it. It doesn’t make sense, what’s the logic behind this? There was a very large crowd, how can you do such a thing in the heart of Istanbul? There are problems in such environments, but we have experienced such a thing for the first time.”
