# Kayra (rapper)

Onur İnal (born 9 August 1985), better known by his stage name Kayra, is a Turkish rapper, lyricist and English teacher, best known for his work with the hip hop group Farazi V Kayra [tr] and the album Hayalet Islığı.
He was a member of the Farazi V Kayra group, which he founded with Burak Demir [tr], disbanded on 31 March 2021. He was also a member of the 90BPM collective until its disbandment in 2020. He is regarded as one of the best Turkish storyteller rappers, with the stories he tells being quite realistic and relatable. Kayra makes references to everyday life, politics, football, the city of Karabük and Turkish culture in his songs. He considers himself and his songs moody and pessimistic. He finds music styles that praise the money it earns absurd and meaningless.

## Career
### 2007–2015: Gına, Farazi V Kayra, Sarhoş Palavraları ve Bekar Evinde Kör Sinekler and Hayalet Islığı

He started his career with the group Gına, which he founded with his beatmaker friend Bitap in 2003. They made a name for themselves in the underground hip hop community with the album Ars Moriendi in 2006, and the albums Doğum Lekesi and İfade Derdi in 2007, they released with the Gına group. Bitap got married and started a family so Gına was forced to disband. In 2007, he met Farazi, another beatmaker at "Freestyle King 2007" organised by Hiphoplife, and they came together under the name Farazi V Kayra.
In 2007 the duo released its first album Sarhoş Palavraları ve Nahoş Nidalar, which was the result of 4 months of work. The album was recorded at Zemin Kat Records in Karabük, and the mixing of the album was done by Bitap. It consists of 7 songs: Makus Talihim, Şevket Hamdi Tan, Klozetin Tepesinde Hayat Muhasebesi, Horoz Dövüşlerinde Kanlı Çizmeler, Konulu Pornoda Figüran, Bir Günlük Öldürün Beni and Kuşluk Vakti Balgamı. The song Bir Günlük Öldürün Beni, contains samples of Mevsim Sonbahar by Metro, and the song Tortu, contains samples of Marianne Faithfull's There Is a Ghost. Bitap also did the scratches for the songs titled Muhterem Hayalet, Kül Yutmaz and Düş peşindeyim; Düş peşime. The cover art and application of the album was done by Emrah Çıldır. A fictional character was created for the album as well, named "Şevket Hamdi Tan" who is told to be as the editor-in-chief for the Turkish newspaper Bulvar in the song Şevket Hamdi Tan. The lyrics of the songs in this album were written by Kayra and Farazi produced the songs in the album.
A year later, in 2008, Farazi V Kayra released its second album Sarhoş Palavraları ve Bekar Evinde Kör Sinekler, lyrics of the songs in this album were written by Kayra, and the tracks in the album were produced by Bitap, with there being no straches in the album. It is an album about what will be left when a single person at a young age, rather than being married, puts whatever they have lived and done on a piece of paper. The cover art and application of the album was done by Emrah Çıldır as well.
In 2009, the group released the single Mart, as part of the various artists themed album Hiphoplife Mixtapes Vol.1 - Nafile.
On 20 November 2010, the duo released the EP Yerel Radyo, the tracks that were prepared for a long lasting album, were brought to mixtape format due to the extension of the album release date due to Kayra's military service. The mixtape lasts about 20 minutes. The lyrics of the album are written by Kayra, infrastructures, mixing, cover art and design were done by Farazi and vocal arrangements in the album are done by Bitap. The first track (Ölmez) is not included in the tracklist because it is only a 2-3 second excerpt from Turkish drama Bizimkiler. The excerpt is taken when the character Cemil, a social alcoholic, is taken to the hospital for treatment with his free will. The words spoken by him are: "Cemil's don't die, they don't die."
On 22 July 2011, Farazi V Kayra released the single Alt Geçit, for the various artists themed compilation album Organize Oluyoruz 1 [tr]. The music video for the song was shot by Bedirhan Karakurluk in Karabük, with there being many references to the city and Karabükspor in the single. The single was later remixed by Farazi in March 2017. In Kayra's track Arafta Bile on the "Kayıp Gölgeler" EP released in April 2020, he makes a reference to Alt Geçit and complains about the process of 'a little patience' still continuing, its endlessness, and defeat.
On 28 December 2011, Farazi V Kayra released the single Mertel Kasetçilik, named after a cassette shop in the Bedesten Bazaar in Karabük, in which Kayra pays his respects to Turkish rappers and rap groups he listened to and was a fan of in his youth such as Karakan [tr], Nefret [tr], Microphone Mafia, Silahsız Kuvvet, Fuat, Ceza, Cartel and many more. The music video for the song was shot by Bedirhan Karakurluk.
On 1 May 2012, Kayra released the EP Saray Yakan Soytarı with DJ Argub. The producer for the songs in the EP is Vinyl Obscura and the lyrics for the songs are written by Kayra. The EP consists of 5 songs.
In 2013, Kayra founded the rap group 90BPM together with Da Poet, Farazi, Savai and Sorgu 90BPM in Istanbul.
On 16 July 2013, Kayra released the single Mesela Yani. The song is inspired by and contains quotes from the 1979 film Korkusuz Korkak, in which Kemal Sunal played the character Mülayim. The producer of the song is CanBeatz. The lyrics of the single are written by Kayra.
On 24 May 2014, Farazi V Kayra released the single Natuk Baytan, which contains the names of the films made by legendary Yeşilçam director Natuk Baytan [tr], especially in the late 70s and 80s.
On 29 November 2014, Kayra released the EP Gitmedim Ama İçinden Geçtim which consists of 5 tracks, along with Sorgu. The songs in the EP are produced by Badmixday, Beatific Vision, Can Kazaz, Farazi and Yüce Ceylanlı and the lyrics of the songs in the EP are written by Kamufle, Kayra, Kodes Kahra, Da Poet and Sorgu. It was released under the Deadly Habits Music music label. The line "I read this beat to the vivid memories, I wish I could make her listen to it (this) like she always wanted" written by Sorgu in the song Tereddüt in this EP is in reference to his mother who had passed away.
In October 2014, 90bpm started the Aydabir project in which they would release a song every month, the project ended in January 2015 with only 4 being singles released; Rahat Bırak Beni, Gafil, Tutmayan Kuponlarım Var 2.0 and Zürafa Tekmesi.
On 14 May 2015, Kayra released his first solo album, the Mucizeye Bir Hafta EP. The album is about Karabükspor's relegation battle from the 1. Lig in the 1993-94 season. Consisting of five tracks, the album depicts the excitement of the fans and the disappointment they experienced after the result of the relegation battle. The "miracle" in the album's title refers to Karabükspor's unexpected defeat in the last minutes of the season's last match, resulting in their unexpected relegation from the league. The tracks were used in the documentary "15mayıs94: The day when the city fell into silence". The tracks in the album were produced by Farazi, Da Poet and Vinyl Obscura.
On 29 March 2015, Farazi V Kayra released the single Tutmayan Kuponlarım Var. The single has samples of Queen Esther Marrow's Peaceful Man and contains an excerpt from Sadri Alışık's film, Serseri.
On 24 July 2015, 90BPM released the album Kötülük Bizim İşimiz (English: Evil Is Our Business). The songs in the album are produced by Badmixday, Group Ses Beats, Da Poet, Farazi, Savai and Sami Baha. The lyrics of the songs in the album were written by 9 Canlı, Ağaçkakan [tr], Allame, Ezhel, Kamufle, Kayra, Da Poet, Sahtiyan and Sorgu. 90BPM were accompanied by 9 Canlı, Ağaçkakan, Allame, Badmixday, Ezhel, Grup Ses Beats, Kamufle, Sahtiyan & Sami Baha in the album. The cover of the album is a picture of Savai's car, a Renault 12. According to Da Poet, the car symbolizes a journey in a metaphorical sense. Kayra defines the name of the album with these words:
   This album's name comes from a drawing of my neighbour's child sitting by himself one summer day. The humorous part or the part of the work that attracted us is that this child we are talking about is very independent, does not even choose food, does not obey his parents. Although he is a good child in every aspect of life, he draws something so strange and writes ‘Evil is Our Business’ under it. We were impressed by this. This attracted us a lot. Actually, there is nothing very evil. We were attracted by this thought of a child who thinks that he only does evil things, who perceives those little things as evil in his own way. When we got into the studio, it seemed like an evil in our own way that we were completely detached from the outside world, our own world, our own place where we belonged, feeling very free. But there is no evil.

#### Hayalet Islığı

On 13 September 2013, Farazi V Kayra released its fourth and most notable album Hayalet Islığı, consisting of 15 tracks; Dokunmayarayaparsın, Cenaze I: Ölüler Konuşamaz, Cenaze II: Kolonya, Cenaze III: Merhumun Çalıntı Gölgesi, Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar I: Fotoğraflarda Ölümü Görüyorum, Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar II: Ayaz Meyhanesi, Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar III: (Bir) Fotoğrafın Rüyası, Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar IV: Bir Eve Hangi Gün Gidilmez, Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar V: Unutulanlar, Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar VI: Kar, Vakitsiz, Yangın I: Sakin, Yangın II: Sandığımdan Herkes Babam Gibi Gülecek, Yangın III: 15 Eylül 1966 and Dobro Vecer. Farazi and Kayra were accompanied by Karaçalı, Da Poet, Sorgu, Ağaçkakan and Type Wheel on vocals and Vinyl Obscura on scratches. The backgrounds of two tracks on the album; Merhumun Çalıntı Gölgesi and Ayaz Meyhanesi were prepared jointly by Farazi and Savai. The tracks Kolonya and (Bir) Fotoğrafın Rüyası were mixed by Kupa-A and the rest of the tracks were mixed by Sorgu. The album is divided into three sections: Cenaze, Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar and Yangın. In the album, Kayra tells the story of someone who has lost a close friend due to a fire.
The Cenaze (lit. funeral in Turkish) section of the album, which is the first section is divided into 3 main songs, is centred on this death, but this death is also seen at intervals throughout the album. In this part of the album, the state of denial that someone who has lost a loved one faces is addressed. This could be understood by Kayra's line, "What are these halvahs for?", which shows between the lines that he does not accept death, referring to the tradition of distributing halvah at funerals.
In Mevsim Olmayan Mekanlar, (English: Unseasonal Spaces) which is divided into 6 tracks and is the second section of the album, Kayra accepts the reality of death. In the first song of this section; Fotoğraflarda Ölümü Görüyorum (lit. I see death in pictures in Turkish) Kayra does not have any lyrics, however he still accompanies the song with his vocals. The lines in the song are taken from the 1992 film Gölge Oyunu. Kayra pays his respects to Uğur Kaymaz [tr], with the line "When the whitest snow falls, good luck will come, when the whitest snow falls, Uğur will wake up and come" a 12 year old killed together with his father Ahmet Kaymaz in front of their house in Kızıltepe district of Mardin on 21 November 2004 by a barrage of police fire, this could be understood by the next line in the song being "Don't stop for a minute and shoot me in the name of the law" in the only protest song in the album; Kar, which is also in this section. Kayra also refers to children killed by the state in the same song with the lyric "I've only got one pair of hands, so slaughter children". This section also contains the most prominent song of the album, Unutulanlar (lit. the forgotten in Turkish), in which the sample from Nina Simeone's I Hold No Grudge, which was also covered by the jazz-rock band Joy Unlimited, was used. The song talks about a person whom the teller a resents on for some reasons, but still does not hold a grudge. With the lyrics ''I wonder who you are? (who?) Who is the host of the funeral?'' the song shows who it is written for in the introduction. With the lines ''Sit down, take a breath, you still have a long way to go'' and "I won't leave you even if they cut you, you're my guest", the person for whom the song is written is actually called to listen to what is said in this song. It is also emphasised in the song that the person mentioned in the song behaved unscrupulously towards the people they left behind and that they are full of hatred.
In the third and the last section of the album: Yangın, (English: Fire) the teller looks for the cause of his friends death and encounters the fire, a phenomenon placed in the centre of the album, with Kayra referencing the incident in almost every song. This section consists of 3 tracks; Sakin, Sandığımdan Herkes Babam Gibi Gülecek and 15 Eylül 1966.
The opening song for the album is Dokunmayarayaparsın, with Dobro Vecer (lit. goodnight in Croatian and Bulgarian) which includes the song Islığı Beklerken in itself as a hidden song starting 40 seconds after the end of Dobro Vecer, symbolizing the religious tradition fortieth ceremony, regarded as the feast of the deceased being the closing song of the album. The song Dobro Vecer sampled from Maria Neykova's single released with the same name in 1972.
The album's cover is a childhood picture of Kayra's dad with a friend of his taken at the Demirçelik High School in Karabük.

### 2016–present: Hayırsız Evlat, Bütün Ayazların Ortasında, copyright dispute with Farazi and Ömrümün Son Güzel Günleri

On 21 November 2016, Kayra and Sycho Gast recorded the song Kaç!, as part of the “Serbest Atış” (Part 4) project with the Deadly Habits Music label. On 28 December 2022, it was licensed through the Zemin Kat Records label. This track (like the others from “Serbest Atış”) was completed in 4 hours.
In 2017, Kayra featured on the track Münnecim on İkra's album Herkes Kadar Kimse.
Along with Joker, Server Uraz, Da Poet, Kamufle and Tankurt Manas, Kayra featured on the protest track Hani Nerdeler (Remix) released by Lewo on 18 August 2017.
On 8 July 2018, Kayra released the single Hayırsız Evlat (English: Undutiful Child), produced by Erdem Sonkaya who is better known by his stage name Radansa. The song contains samples from Roberto Carlos's song Nuestro Amor.
On 25 January 2019, Kayra released the first part of the Bütün Ayazların Ortasında album constisting of 3 songs: Yol, Çok Yaşlıyım and Kafamda Cehennem with a music video being made for Kafamda Cehennem.
On 22 March 2019, Kayra released the second part of the Bütün Ayazların Ortasında album constisting of 3 songs: Olmadım Say, Kül Kalır and Dişçi Koltuğu with a music video being made for Olmadım Say.
On 24 May 2019, Kayra fully released the album Bütün Ayazların Ortasında (English: In the Midst of All Frosts), produced by Beatific Vision, Becrux, Da Poet and Radansa and written by Kayra, Da Poet and Radansa, the album contains a plot from beginning to end and is shaped around the character Veysel, who is voiced by Kayra in the skits. The rather dark theme of the album is about the troubles in daily life such as family problems, toothache, foreclosure and the emotions these troubles arouse in people. In this album, where solo songs predominate, Kayra is accompanied by Da Poet on Kül Kalır and Karaçalı on Felaketimi Beklerken. Three songs in the album have music videos, Olmadım Say, Öfkemin Şafağı and Kafamda Cehennem. The album's cover is a picture of Kayra's dad on a motorcycle. Both Sızlıyor Kemiklerim and Hayırsız Evlat are directly related to the album. According to Kayra, Sızlıyor Kemiklerim was one of the songs Kayra wrote when he was trying to create the first language for the album. Hayırsız Evlat was also one of the songs in the album as well, but he had to make eliminations as there would start to be too many songs. In 2020, comic book artist Ege Avcı published a comic book adaptation inspired by the album under the Baobab label and the album's original title.
On 20 December 2019, Kayra released the EP Bütün Ayazların Ardından - Single (English: After All Frosts - Single), constisting of two songs: Kara Leke and Pazar Yeri. Both songs were produced by Fonetik.
On 24 April 2020, Kayra released the EP Kayıp Gölgeler, constisting of 4 songs: Arafta Bile, CM 01-02, Beyoğlu, and Köprüaltı Kemancı. Kayra is accompanied by Barış Demirel on Beyoğlu. Tracks in the album were produced by Batubomaye and Da Poet.
On 31 March 2021, a dispute broke out the duo and Farazi removed their albums and singles from music streaming services. The reason for this dispute was related to copyright issues. Farazi claimed that he was not paid the revenues of the albums and singles released under his own production company Deadly Habits Music. Farazi said that Kayra collected 86.000 Turkish liras without informing him and did not share it with him. Kayra would go on to respond to Farazi, by denying Farazi's claims and stating that he has not received the royalties he deserves since 2013. Kayra stated that Farazi did not keep his promises to him, did not publish his albums, made him a victim and exploited him and his rights, also stating that he had filed a lawsuit against Farazi. Kayra also stated that he took care of everything himself and Farazi made no attempt at helping him with the group Farazi V Kayra.
On 10 June 2022, Kayra released the album Meçhul Bir Yalnızlığa Dair, constisting of 11 songs, all of which he is accompanied by various artists. The main theme of the album is Kayra's student life in Ankara between the ages of 18 and 22. He is accompanied by A-Bacchus on Muhtemel Son, Yeryüzünde Bir Akşam, Ölüm Bugün Uyu, Duymuyor Beni Ankara, SaklıKent, En Ölü Rockstar, Mutsuzlar Güzel Güler and Rezil ve Yalnız, by Fonetik on İçimdeki Yasal Boşluklar, Onlar Şehre Dönecek Bir Akşam and Fotoğraftaki Herkes Gitti. Tracks in the album were produced by Fonetik and A-Bacchus.
On 14 April 2023, Kayra released the EP Cehennem Kundaklayanlar, along with A-Bacchus and Vinyl Obscura. It consists of 6 songs: Rifle, Hırs, Cehennemden Manzaralar, Wicked, Kimin İçin and Bağırsam Çağırsam. Tracks in the EP were produced by A-Bacchus and Vinyl Obscura.
On 20 October 2023, Kayra released the album Ömrümün Son Güzel Günleri. Tracks in the album were produced by A-Bacchus and Fonetik. He is accompanied by Yiğit Seferoğlu on the song Bu Kaçıncı İsyan, by Fredd on the song Katil Gramafon and by Doruk Ereşter on the song Küçük Şehirlerde Trajik Tesadüfler in this album.

## Personal life

He teaches English at Akçakonak Primary School in Aydın, Söke. He is a Karabükspor supporter, and has gone on to devote the EP "Mucizeye Bir Hafta Kala" to the teams relegation battle in the 1993–94 1. Lig, which ended in Karabükspor being relegated to the TFF Second League. He describes himself as timid and shy person. He is married.
In 2003, he was accepted to the English Language and Literature Department of Hacettepe University and moved to Ankara in order to continue his education, later moving to Istanbul 6 years after in 2009.

## Aliases
### Kayra

According to Kayra himself, he chose Kayra as his pseudonym due to the influence of Hakan Günday's novel Kinyas ve Kayra, a novel he read at 19 years old, he also stated that if he knew then when he knows now he would have chosen Kinyas instead.

### Zapkinus

Kayra explains the meaning of Zapkinus with these words:
   In the film Destiny, one character called the other ‘Here you go, Zapkinus’ in one scene. I thought it was very funny to call someone Zapkinus. For this reason, I use it in various places, but Zapkinus is not a musical identity.

### Mori de Zappa

Although Kayra has never produced anything with this pseudonym, at the beginning of the song Kanlı Karnaval, Kayra shouts 'Kayra Mori de Zappa".

## Discography
### Albums

* Gına - Ars Moriendi (2006)
* Gına - Doğum Lekesi (2007)
* Gına - İfade Derdi (2007)
* Farazi V Kayra [tr] - Sarhoş Palavraları ve Nahoş Nidalar (2007)
* Farazi V Kayra - Sarhoş Palavraları ve Bekar Evinde Kör Sinekler (2008)
* Farazi V Kayra - Yerel Radyo EP (2010)
* Farazi V Kayra - Hayalet Islığı (2013)
* Farazi V Kayra - Sarhoş Palavraları ve İbretlik Hikâyeleri (2015)
* Bütün Ayazların Ortasında (2019)
* Meçhul Bir Yalnızlığa Dair (2022)
* Ömrümün Son Güzel Günleri (2023)
* Da Poet & Kayra - Normal (2024)
* Da Poet & Kayra - Normal Deluxe (2025)

### EPs

* Gına - Inziva (2005)
* Saray Yakan Soytarı (2012)
* Gitmedim Ama İçinden Geçtim (2014)
* Mucizeye Bir Hafta (2015)
* Kayıp Gölgeler (2020)
* Cehennem Kundaklayanlar (2023)
* Ölüler Parkı Fanzin (2025)

### Singles

* Farazi V Kayra - "Alt Geçit" (2011)
* Farazi V Kayra - "Mertel Kasetçilik" (2011)
* "Mesela Yani" (2013)
* Farazi V Kayra - "Tutmayan Kuponlarım Var" (2015)
* "Kaç!" (2016)
* "Hayırsız Evlat" (2018)
* "Şehrin Hayaleti" (2019)
* "Karartma Enseyi" (2020)
* "Geceye Varınca" (2021)
* "Kanlı Karnaval" (2021)
* "Her Yerde Hiçbir Şey" (2021)
* "Haziranda Vurulmak" (2021)
* "Muhtemel Son" (2022)
* "Duymuyor Beni Ankara" (2022)
* "Gidin Başımdan" (2022)
* "Manifest" (2022)
* "Geçit Yok" (2022)
* "Buz Kesene Kadar" (2023)
* "Uzak" (2023)
* "Karışsın Kanla Yağmur" (2023)
* Deniz Tekin, Da Poet & Kayra - "Kalamam Aranızda" (2024)