Meykhana () is a distinctive Azerbaijani literary and

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

rap tradition, consisting of an unaccompanied song performed by one or more people improvising on a particular subject. Meykhana is distinct from

spoken word poetry Spoken word is an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a 20th-century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of recitation ...

in that it is performed in time to a beat. Meykhana is often compared to

hip hop music Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music Music genre, genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African Americans, African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide r ...

, also known as ''national rap'' among Azerbaijani residents, as it also includes performers that is spoken lyrically, in rhyme and verse, generally to an instrumental or synthesized

beat Beat, beats, or beating may refer to: Common uses * Assault, inflicting physical harm or unwanted physical contact * Battery (crime), a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact * Battery (tort), a civil wrong in common law of inte ...

. Performers also incorporate synthesizers, drum machines, and live bands. Meykhana masters may write, memorize, or improvise their lyrics and perform their works

a cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

or to a beat.

Etymology

The name of this genre comes from the traditional

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

''meykhane'' (tavern, pub), which itself originated from the

word ''mey'' (wine) and ''khane'' (house). The professional performers of meykhana are known as the ''Söz Ustadı'' (Word Masters) in Azerbaijani, also called as the meykhana masters.

History

Since medieval times, meyhanes were places where poets would gather exchanging verses in an extemporaneous fashion, sometimes joking and disparaging one another. At the end of the contest, the audience determined which poet had improvised the most elegant and clever verses and declared him the winner. These contests may be compared with modern poetry improvisation contests or even with

rap battle Battle rap (also known as rap battling)Edwards, Paul, 2009, p. 25. is a type of rapping performed between two or more performers that incorporates boasts, insults, wordplay and disses originating in the African-American community. Battle rap is of ...

Soviet pressure (1940–1991)

Meykhana was performed among the youth of

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

settlements in the pre-

Revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

time. Although during the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

period meykhana was banned, the poetry of Aliagha Vahid was often rhymed as a contemporary meykhana.Bədahətən deyilməyən meyxananı qəbul etmirik – meyxana ustaları
This could be related to the meykhana's popularity among the residents of

and Absheron regions.

Popular acceptance (1991–2001)

After

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

's downfall, meykhana found mainstream acceptance in Azerbaijan, though many

fundamentalists Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that are characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishin ...

still protested the genre, saying that it was still too liberal and in contrast to traditional national values. They claimed the musical genre still promoted sexuality, alcohol, drugs and Western consumer culture, but critics of the fundamentalist viewpoint stated that fundamentalists and meykhana musicians were ultimately seeking converts from the same population, the youth, who often had to choose where they belonged between the two cultures. New performers emerged in this era with their distinctive takes on meykhana: Aghasalim Childagh, Kabir Azeri, Aghamirza Mammadov, Aghakarim Novruzov, Elchin Mashtagaly and Mashadibaba Aydamirov started the meykhana wave, combining Azerbaijani national music-influenced meykhana music with

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

. Nizami Ramzi was first meykhana master to be ever performed in national television and in popular movies.

Contemporary mainstream meykhana (2001–present)

As the 90s progressed, meykhana's sound became more standardized as newer performers drew inspiration for the same collective set of influences that included Aydin Khirdalanli, Rashad Daghly, Elshan Khazar, Vahid Gadim, Mahir Ju'rat, Oktay, Vugar Mashtagaly and Namig Mana. Namig Garachukhurlu, in particular, with its romantic dissonance and duos with Azerbaijani pop singers like

Aygun Kazimova Aygun Alasgar gyzy Kazimova () (born 26 January 1971) is an Azerbaijanis, Azerbaijani Singing, singer, songwriter, pop musician, and actress. She is a well known singer in Azerbaijan, Turkey and Russia. Her 2006 and 2007 solo concerts in Mosco ...

, created the sonic template for a new movement, which became known as popular music-meykhana songs. However, this produced division among meykhana performers. The fundamentalist meykhana performers decided to keep the classical style which they have used through last decades, while the new wave of meykhana performers decided to combine meykhana with different

musical genres This is a list of music genres and styles. Music can be described in terms of many genres and styles. Classifications are often arbitrary, and may be disputed and closely related forms often overlap. Larger genres and styles comprise more specifi ...

. With the increased popularity of meykhana in the 1990s and the 2000s, television channels started broadcasting and creating meykhana tournaments. The television programs such as ''De, Gəlsin!'' (Say, Come On!) in

ANS TV ANS TV (also known as ''ANS Independent Broadcasting Media Company'', stylized as ⱭNẞ until 2012) was a news television channel in Azerbaijan, which was owned by ANS Group of Companies from its foundation on 26 November 1991 until its closure ...

led meykhana to popularize even more among local residents and demand for meykhana increased significantly in Azerbaijani weddings.

Derivatives and offshoots

The most known type of meykhana is verbal exchange (''deyişmə''), where some phrase or sentence forms a rhyme with the following couplets.

Censorship of meykhana

Throughout the course of meykhana music's development and commercialization in Azerbaijan, there have been many attempts to stifle the art form. From lyrical content to the album cover images, meykhana has been a controversial music. Religious identity and transnationalism function to define the complexities of Azerbaijani identity in world. This complex identity is expressed through meykhana and is often contested and censored in many cultural contexts. Meykhana started to circulate on a larger mainstream scale, via cassette tape sales, TV exposure, and radio play, adding to the national economy. However, as the music mainstreamed, its audio and visual content became more tamed by the government in hopes to reach a larger audience. In essence, the government attempted to "clean up" meykhana's content and image to adhere to the religious beliefs instilled in Azerbaijani culture.

Delivery

To successfully deliver a meykhana, a meykhana master must also develop vocal presence,

enunciation Elocution is the study of formal speaking in pronunciation, grammar, style, and tone as well as the idea and practice of effective speech and its forms. It stems from the idea that while communication is symbolic, sounds are final and compel ...

, and breath control. Vocal presence is the distinctiveness of a meykhana master's voice on record. Enunciation is essential to a flowing meykhana couplets; some meykhana masters choose also to exaggerate it for comic and artistic effect. Breath control, taking in air without interrupting one's delivery, is an important skill for a meykhana performer to master. Meykhana couplets are always delivered with melody. The ability to compose quickly, meaningful and clearly meykhana couplets is regarded as an important sign of skill.

Social impact

The nationwide popularity of meykhana music meant that it became a major influence on culture, fashion and social attitudes. Different subgenres of meykhana were adopted by, and became central to, the identity of a large number of

sub-culture A subculture is a group of people within a cultural society that differentiates itself from the values of the conservative, standard or dominant culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop ...

s. These reforms also laid the foundation of the modern Azerbaijani hip hop, who adopted meykhana style, respectively in the 1990s. Since its early development meykhana has been associated with rebellion against social and political norms, most obviously in early meykhana music's rejection of a government dominated culture, the

counter-culture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Ho ...

's rejection of

consumerism Consumerism is a socio-cultural and economic phenomenon that is typical of industrialized societies. It is characterized by the continuous acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing quantities. In contemporary consumer society, the ...

of all forms of social convention. On 30 May 2012, an anti-Putin

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

message started trending worldwide after opposition activists posted a hashtag "Putin, who are you? Come on, get out of here" (#путинтыктотакойдавайдосвидания), inspired by a meykhana in the Astara region of Azerbaijan (" Ty kto takoy? Davay, do svidaniya!"). It became an

internet meme An Internet meme, or meme (, Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through Social media, social media platforms. Internet memes manif ...

and made worldwide trends. In June 2012, Russian rapper

Timati Timur Ildarovich Yunusov (; born 15 August 1983), better known by his stage name Timati (), is a Russian rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. Biography Early life Timur Ildarovich Yunusov (, ) was born on 15 August 1983 i ...

with other rappers made a

diss track A diss track, diss record or diss song (an abbreviation of ''disrespect'' or ''disparage'') is a song whose primary purpose is to verbally attack someone else, usually another artist. Diss tracks are often the result of an existing, escalating feu ...

"Davaydosvidaniya" about

Philipp Kirkorov Philipp Bedros Kirkorov (, ; ; born 30 April 1967) is a Bulgarian-born Russian pop singer. Kirkorov's career began in 1985 with participation in the Soviet musical TV show "Wider Circle". Since 2000, he has maintained public interest in his pe ...

after sampling from this song.

Notable performers

* Vugar Abdulov * Mashadibaba Aydamirov * Aghasalim Childagh * Rashad Daghly * Agshin Fateh * Elshan Khazar * Aydin Khirdalanly * Balaali * Bayram Kurdakhanly * Namig Mana * Namiq Garachukhurlu * Nizami Ramzi

References

External links

Meyxana.Net

Dеgеlsin.Com

Meyxana.iatp.az
{{Middle Eastern music Culture of Azerbaijan Azerbaijani inventions Music of Azerbaijan Azerbaijani styles of music Verse contests