Favorite Song of the Day: Vele Vele


The artist seen in this video is Kurdish singer Ibrahim Tatlises but he is not the singer you hear. I have not been able to determine the name of the singer.

My dad was one of the first mobile DJs in our part of Los Angeles, east of the Los Angeles River. He apprenticed my brother into the trade. I also accompanied my father to his “gigs” where I would help carry equipment (the easy stuff like cords) and watched as he mixed records and MC’ed the various parties, quinces and weddings he was hired to DJ. A few times he’d set up the turntables so that I could mix two songs together but I was always too shy and nervous to try. It’s one of the few regrets I have in life, I never learned the family trade of mobile DJing.

Whenever we have parties, naturally my brother and father are in charge of the music and they sure know how to pack a dance floor! But I’ve always craved a more challenging mix of music for my parties, familiar songs you wouldn’t think to put together peppered with obscure, catchy tunes. Finally this weekend, at the last big party I will hostess for a long time, I got the nerve to make my own mix and play it – it was a proud moment for me. The mix was playing from my IPOD and I didn’t have to match any beats or anything but the party attendees listened and responded. It even inspired a few to try out some newly learned Flamenco moves. Eventually though, my brother reclaimed his territory and the dance floor filled with folks gleefully singing along to songs they know and love.

Later in the evening, when the crowd thinned, I took the opportunity to play music I like to dance to, music like this delightful Egyptian pop song above. With a few friends, we danced a halay and they shouted for more Balkan music, more Bulgarian pop and it was like the last little piece of the puzzle had clicked into place for me. No more fear on the dance floor or in the DJ booth!

I’ve wanted to share this clip for over a year now but because I wasn’t sure who sang the song or why it was matched up with Ibrahim Tatlises visit to the show Mezdeke Komedi, I waited until I could get more information. So far, all I have is the name of the song. That’s enough for me – no more waiting for everything to fit, here we go!

By the way, if you’re wondering what kind of music this is considered, some folks call it Egyptian pop or Arabic pop. It’s one of my favorite genres of music and I hope to include more of these tunes in upcoming posts.

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