Born in Yalova to Turkish immigrant parents from Skopje, Macedonia, Ferah got her first guitar when she was in the first year in boarding at Bursa Namık Sözeri High School. She took lessons on the acoustic guitar, and during her second year she hired a studio with her friends and formed the group Pegasus. The group had their first stage experience during a rock festival in Bursa, in 1987. After a while, Pegasus disbanded. In 1988 with her four friends, Ferah formed Volvox, which was named after a microorganism that they had encountered in a biology lesson.
After a period during which she attended Middle East Technical University, studying economics in Ankara, she moved to Istanbul, where she attended classes on English language and literature at the Istanbul University. For two years she performed in various bars with Volvox, until they disbanded in 1994.
She released her first solo album, Kadın in 1996, and has gone on to release a total of six full studio albums, the last one being Benim Adım Orman, released in 2009. In addition to composing the music and writing the lyrics of every song in her albums, she occasionally sings on stage cover versions of work by artists of similar vocal qualities and style, such as Amy Lee and Skin.
On her third album, Perdeler, she collaborated with the Finnish cello rock band Apocalyptica.
Ferah's current group consists of Buket Doran (bass guitar), Metin Türkcan (electric guitar), Aykan İlkan (drums), and Ozan Tügen (keyboard), who have been performing with her in studio and on stage since her third album, Perdeler.
Oyunlar
Şebnem Ferah Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Herkes gibi benim de yerim var
Yüzümden gitmeyen acı gülüşte
Hiç sönmeyen yangınların izi var
Yıktım duvarları yaramı sardım
Yalnızca bildiğim bir şarkı var
Ne iz ne söz eski bir şey kalmasın ardımda
İsmi bilinmez bir yerlere yolcuyum
Dikensiz gül olmaktansa kardelen olurum
Bizler büyürken durmaz büyür oyunlar
Bütün oyunlarda herkes kadar benim de payım var
The lyrics of Şebnem Ferah's song "Oyunlar" capture the sense of feeling lost and disconnected in a world where pain and suffering seem never-ending. The opening lines evoke a sense of despair, as they describe a place where heartless eyes abound. Despite this, the singer still feels that she has a place in this world, just like everyone else.
The “acı gülüşte” or the fake smile that she puts on doesn't hide the traces of the constant fires that are burning within her. The second stanza conveys a sense of resilience and determination in the face of adversity. She has torn down the walls that were preventing her from healing, and has found comfort in a song that speaks to her soul. She is leaving behind all things old, and moving forward to a place where she doesn't know what to expect. In the final stanza, Şebnem Ferah sings about the growing pains that are a given part of life. The metaphor of the "oyunlar" or games, highlights how much life can seem like a process of playing roles, or just going through the motions without fully experiencing it.
Overall, "Oyunlar" is a song that speaks to the pain, hope, and resilience of the human experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Yüreksiz gözlerin olduğu bu yerde
In this place where there are heartless eyes
Herkes gibi benim de yerim var
I have a place just like everyone else
Yüzümden gitmeyen acı gülüşte
In my painful smile that never goes away from my face
Hiç sönmeyen yangınların izi var
There is a mark of never-ending fires
Yıktım duvarları yaramı sardım
I destroyed the walls and healed my wound
Yalnızca bildiğim bir şarkı var
I only know one song
Ne iz ne söz eski bir şey kalmasın ardımda
I don't want anything old to remain behind me, neither a trace nor any words
İsmi bilinmez bir yerlere yolcuyum
I am travelling to unknown places
Dikensiz gül olmaktansa kardelen olurum
Rather than being a rose without thorns, I choose to be a snowdrop
Bizler büyürken durmaz büyür oyunlar
While we grow up, games never stop growing
Bütün oyunlarda herkes kadar benim de payım var
I also have a share in every game, just like everyone else
Contributed by Matthew R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.