27.08.2026 20:30
In Samsun, a tradesman who devoted half of his communications shop to nostalgic cassettes, CDs, and vinyl records continues to display thousands of works on shelves so that this culture does not disappear, even if there are no sales.
Atikali Aydın, a tradesman who has been in the music world since the flamboyant era of Unkapanı, continues to practice his profession in Samsun.
HE COLLECTED 7,000 CASSETTES TO KEEP THE CULTURE ALIVE Aydın, who allocates half of his shop to cover expenses with mobile phone accessories, devotes the other half to nostalgic cassettes, CDs, and vinyl records. Stating that although he sells at most 1-2 cassettes a month, he strives to ensure this culture is learned by young people and does not disappear, Aydın noted that he preserves a collection of 7,000 cassettes along with many original music CDs and records.
"IN THE OLD DAYS, PEOPLE WAITED 1 YEAR FOR AN ARTIST'S CASSETTE TO BE RELEASED" Expressing that there was intense interest in cassettes, especially in the 90s and 2000s, and that people waited eagerly for a year for an artist's cassette to come out, tradesman Atikali Aydın said, "I don't do this for profit. I continue because I've been doing this job since my childhood. I set aside a corner of my shop for nostalgic music cassettes, CDs, and records. I couldn't give up this passion. I want to teach these works to young people. I want them to learn what records, cassettes, and CDs are, and more importantly, what music is. Recently, artificial intelligence works have increased, but we recommend young people listen to these. In the old days, there was intense interest in music cassettes, and there were also true music listeners; now there aren't. In the past, people waited 1 year for an artist's cassette to come out. A cassette had 8-10 tracks. Those tracks were listened to for a whole year. In those times, doing this work was also very enjoyable. Now, we can't quite understand it. Cassettes by artists like Erkin Koray, Kıraç, Banu, Tüdanya, Orhan Gencebay, Ferdi Tayfur, Müslüm Gürses, and Sibel Can were awaited. Those who became famous in the cassette era lasted 40-50 years. Now, look at those who become famous; they get a few million listens, but after a certain time, they're forgotten and fade away," he said.
"WE SELL CASSETTES AT PRICES STARTING FROM 500 TL" Stating that the prices of cassettes in the shop range between 500 TL and 1,500 TL, Aydın said, "Recently, music has been very strange. Very clean sounds produced by artificial intelligence don't give me pleasure. I currently have 7,000 cassettes on hand. We buy and sell. Occasionally, young people show interest in cassettes. Some are curious, I explain, and they buy. Some buy cassettes as gifts for their mothers, some for their fathers. There isn't much demand. Cassette pressings are no longer made. Products in people's hands keep circulating. Cassette prices vary according to their features. A cassette's value starts at 500 TL and goes up to 1,500 TL. I sell original cassettes. If we value them compared to old times, a cassette should now be worth 2,000 TL. Some cassettes have 7.5 million lira written on them. It was good money for its time. I buy old cassettes from those who want to sell them, paying them their worth," he said.
"THIS WORK CANNOT BE DONE FOR PROFIT, WE SELL 1-2 CASSETTES A MONTH" Emphasizing that one cannot make a living by only selling cassettes, Aydın said, "I do this cassette and CD selling as a hobby. It doesn't bring me any profit. I set aside one side of my shop for this. I can't do it for profit because only 1-2 cassettes sell a month. I want this culture not to disappear but to live on. Records were absent for a period, then they gained demand again. It's the same with cassettes. I believe music is better listened to from cassettes," he said.
In Aydın's shop, original cassettes of many artists who were bestsellers in their time, such as İbrahim Tatlıses, Ferdi Tayfur, Müslüm Gürses, Orhan Gencebay, Hakkı Bulut, Emrah, Kibariye, Bergen, Cengiz Kurtoğlu, Coşkun Sabah, İbrahim Erkal, Mahsun Kırmızıgül, Azer Bülbül, Küçük İbo, Gökhan Güney, Ümit Besen, Nejat Alp, Arif Susam, Ebru Gündeş, Muazzez Ersoy, Bülent Ersoy, Sibel Can, Seda Sayan, Gülden Karaböcek, Kamuran Akkor, Mine Koşan, Tarkan, Sezen Aksu, Yonca Evcimik, Mustafa Sandal, Burak Kut, Çelik, Levent Yüksel, Kenan Doğulu, Mirkelam, Yaşar, Emel Müftüoğlu, Nilüfer, Sertab Erener, Reyhan Karaca, and Nazan Öncel, are also displayed on the shelves.