In the heart of Kreuzberg, under a warm glow of stage lights, the space buzzes with togetherness and excitement. Friends greet each other with hugs, laughter bounces off the walls, and strangers become fast companions. It’s in this atmosphere of celebration that the İÇ İÇE Festival came to life in 2021, a dream realized by organizer and creative director Melissa Kolukisagil.
“İÇ İÇE was born in 2019, or at least the idea of it was,” Kolukisagil says in the crowdfunding video. “At the time, I was already organizing events, but I felt the scene was lacking a space for people like me – for my friends, for my sister. A place where we could just come as we are and celebrate our music.”
The festival’s name, İÇ İÇE, means “intertwined” in Turkish, reflecting a desire to provide a space where migrant, queer, and FLINTA* communities can openly celebrate their identities, music, and stories. A modest idea in 2019 soon flourished into Germany’s first festival dedicated to new Anatolian music and underrepresented voices. Within two short years, İÇ İÇE has played to sold-out venues across Berlin, Cologne, Munich, and Heidelberg, attracting international artists with roots in Anatolia and the Arab world. Over the years, we have met quite a few artists who performed at the festival, like Felukah, Güner Künier, Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek, BRKN, douniah, Ebow. These performances have shaped a new cultural sharing, bridging diasporic sounds and local beats in ways rarely seen on mainstream stages.
Yet despite its growing reach, İÇ İÇE now faces an uncertain future. Sudden and drastic cuts in cultural funding across Germany mean that the festival, which was largely backed by public funding, will lose this primary financial support entirely in 2025.
Photo by Ceren Saner
More than Music
Beginning in the 1960s, when guest workers made Kreuzberg their home, the soulful notes of Anatolian music made their way into Berlin’s cultural scene. Decades on, the city’s underground life absorbed these influences, and the sounds of traditional instruments found their direction alongside Berlin’s local beats. Today, İÇ İÇE carries that spirit forward, showing the ways Anatolian music continues to evolve within today’s diaspora.
From day one, the festival has spotlighted voices and identities that have long been left out. Behind the İÇ İÇE Festival is a dedicated festival team made up primarily of queer and migrant people. The festival has consistently prioritized the safety of queer and FLINTA* people supported by a dedicated awareness team that ensures everyone feels respected and safe. This commitment to inclusivity runs through all the more powerfully now, as Germany’s social and political climate is growing more inhospitable, threatening cultural venues that uphold diversity and acceptance.
“We are a festival for and by people who are marginalized in multiple ways, which makes us inherently political,” says Kolukisagil in an interview with taz. “İÇ İÇE cannot exist without solidarity with Kurdish, Palestinian, and queer communities. Sadly, that also makes us a target of the right-wing culture war.”
Yet, it is not only the inclusive lineup that makes İÇ İÇE unique; it also brings people together for deeper cultural exchanges. Workshops, performances, readings, and discussions on identity, solidarity, and racism open spaces for connections between communities that are rarely centered in cultural spaces of this kind. A member of the organizing team emphasizes:
“İÇ İÇE is one of those spaces that is a break from everyday life in Germany. I’d say that time slows down here: it’s like a lifetime all in one day. That’s why we need this festival not next year, but this year already.”
Without alternative sources of funding, this vital cultural space could vanish. The organizers have launched a crowdfunding campaign with a €35,000 goal to bridge the gap, but the future still hangs in the balance. Part of the target has already been reached through community support, but more is needed to secure the festival’s future. Despite the uncertainty, İÇ İÇE’s pulse refuses to fade as the organizer’s passion for art and unity carries on. Supporting this festival means preserving a moment of freedom, where the music is loud and everyone is invited to share in the moment.
Donate now to support İÇ İÇE Festival 2025. The crowdfunding link is one click away.