When audiences settle in tonight at the Music Center at Strathmore to hear Sezen Aksu sing, they will be experiencing an evening with who critics call the queen of pop music in Turkey.

“She is loved and respected not only for her lovely 23 albums but also the 550 songs she has composed for almost every single pop singer in Turkish pop music history,” said Serol Agazat, her United States promoter and manager. “She’s been a mentor, a teacher and a total inspiration to many artists and individuals.”