Istanbul: When Turkish singer Arif Altunkaya first heard Umm Kulthum's voice at the age of 19, it stopped him cold. "I remember thinking, if what we're making is music, then what is this?" Altunkaya said, recalling his first encounter with her 1964 classic Enta Omri (You're My Life) around 2006 or 2007. "You can't help but start comparing. And of course, it really hit me - shook me, actually. Because you're listening to something that is far, far above what you're doing."

According to Anadolu Agency, until then, Altunkaya had been familiar with Arabic music but had never encountered the Egyptian singer whose voice would come to redefine his artistic life. What Altunkaya felt that day echoes with what Egyptian writer Abbas Mahmoud al-Aqqad once said: "Umm Kulthum proved that singing is not only the art of throats and mouths, but also the art of minds and hearts."

Altunkaya's experience is not unique. Though nearly half a century has passed since her death in 1975, Umm Kulthum still holds a special place in Trkiye's musical memory, her voice continuing to move listeners who often do not understand Arabic but still feel its emotional depth. Murat Ozyildirim, author and lecturer emeritus, has documented this phenomenon in his book, Umm Kulthum and the Turks. "Without any exaggeration, after the Arab world itself, Umm Kulthum's largest fan base in the Middle East was in Trkiye," Ozyildirim told Anadolu in an interview.

As Egypt declared 2025 the "Year of Umm Kulthum" to mark the 50th anniversary of her death, Ozyildirim's book was published the same year in tribute to the artist in both Turkish and Arabic. The Turkish obsession with the Egyptian diva was born not just of talent, but of necessity.