‘Women to Watch: Women Who Make a Difference’ ceremony was held at Swissotel The Bosphorus, Istanbul.
One of the most creative and prolific names in Turkish pop whose jingles immediately get stuck in our heads, Nil Karaibrahimgil’s introduction to commercials dates back prior to “Free Girl”.
Nil Karaibrahimgil, Popstar – Jingle Producer
After starting out years ago writing copy for advertisements, Nil Karaibrahimgil took part in a Turkcell ad and became the advertising face of the brand. In the following years, she continued her career in music but never said goodbye to advertising. In addition to releasing five unforgettable albums full of hits, Karaibrahimgil also composed, wrote and performed a number of jingles for many brands.
A figure whose introduction to the advertising world dates back nearly 15 years, Karaibrahimgil performed incredibly well last year. Throughout 2012, tons of commercials, both domestic and global, featuring the jingles she wrote ranked at the top of most remembered and most liked commercials lists. This accomplishment has led to us hearing more than one spot with the Nil Karaibrahimgil mark every time we turn on the TV. Her latest achievement is as the face of Digiturk.
“I dreamed about these days when I was only six years old,” says Karaibrahimgil, explaining that there are six turning points that shaped her career.
The first turning point in the career of the accomplished musician is getting the chance to enroll at Boğaziçi University and transferring to the International Relations department with a 4.0 average.
The second is starting part-time work as an intern copywriter at Young & Rubicam while she was in college. She would even go on to win a Crystal Apple in the year following this decision – but there was a fork in the road awaiting her.
When she appeared in Turkcell’s Hazırkart commercials as “Free Girl” and performed the song for the campaign, she had arrived at the fork in the road. After hearing the “Free Girl” song, Sony Music offered Nil Karaibrahimgil the chance to make an album.
According to Karaibrahimgil, the four-album contract she signed with Sony Music was a critical point of her career, as was each album on its own.
The last was when she became a columnist. Karaibrahimgil’s column has been published in the daily newspaper Hürriyet’s Kelebek supplement every Monday for the past nine years. She describes this final decision in her long career path with the sentence: “Let me not be an advertiser; let me write and sing songs.”
A musician who changed her path from being an award-winning advertiser, Nil Karaibrahimgil’s first love was jingles, one of the most important elements in any commercial. To those at the beginning of their career, Karaibrahimgil gives the following advice: “Do a lot of what you do best, and don’t listen to anyone.”
She says that her professional and social personas are very similar: “Whatever you see in my professional life is who I am. I decided not to split up the two after reading an interview a long time ago. There aren’t seven differences, aside from a little glitter and spotlights,” Karaibrahimgil says. When asked how she spends her time outside of work: “I stimulate my mind and emotions. I need to keep them alive. Each day, I prepare the soul’s lunchbox,” she explains.
Nil Karaibrahimgil’s latest accomplishment is being featured as the face of Digiturk’s commercials, and she also prepares and sings the brand’s commercial jingles.
“I spend my time outside of work stimulating my mind and emotions. I need to keep them alive. Each day, I prepare the soul’s lunchbox.”
