Brothers in life: Local restaurant owners also world-class musicians

Aleks and Michael Tosun have a passion for everything they do and they do many things together like serve up tasty burgers at their Belmont restaurant.

The brothers opened Godfather’s Burger Lounge about two years ago to rave reviews and are now set to reignite another shared passion — their love of world music.

Now both in their 40s, the brothers were once considered one of Turkey’s most promising alternative bands dating back to the mid-1990s, even having one of their songs banned from radio there for lyrics critical of the Turkish government.

Their band, Cemali (with the "C” pronounced as a "J”), is now in the middle of producing an album they hope will be both a hit in Turkey and here in the United States.

Born in Malatya, Turkey, the brothers ended up in San Mateo about 30 years ago and pursued careers in cinematography and family counseling. They taught themselves music, however, and produced several discs in Turkish that brought the duo to stages across the world.

Cemali’s music combines the culture and music from Turkey and the United States and blends stirring melodies, alternative electronic rhythms and world beat woven with original contemporary poetry. Some call them the Depeche Mode of Turkey.

They have not produced an album of new recordings for nearly a decade, though, but have performed live at the San Francisco World Music Festival in recent years.

The brothers are currently mixing their next album at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley and have enlisted some of the Bay Area’s top session players to perform on the album. The album will be a reworking of many of the band’s old songs, already popular in Turkey, with a mix of some new recordings. They are also considering adding some English lyrics into the mix for the first time for their American audience.

Two of the band’s songs have garnered international attention, including "Yuh Yuh” which was banned in Turkey for lyrics critical of the government. Another of the brother’s songs, "Duymak Istiyorum” was re-recorded by Emre Aydin, a Turkish pop singer who won a Eurovision award for the recording.

They have even been sought out by politicians in Turkey, eager to get their endorsement.

The brothers are ready to hit the music scene again because their fans have demanded it, they told the Daily Journal.

"The fans miss it and we really miss it,” Aleks said. "The fans are demanding new material. They are dying to have their hands on our music.”

The message in their music is universal love, peace and equality.

But they also touch on political subjects that have often been criticized by the elite in Turkey, they said.

Like San Francisco, Turkey is another melting pot of the world, with diverse people and viewpoints, they said.

Despite not recording new material for years, music is always with the brothers.

"Even at Godfather’s you can feel our passion for music,” Aleks said.

Both men are now married and Michael and his wife are expecting their first child in April.

"Life is busier now,” Michael said. "But you discover things about yourself as you go. Spiritually our music has matured, both lyrically and musically.”

They come from a family of poets and singers in Turkey and are eager to carry on the tradition.

"We might be the first musicians deemed ‘alternative’ in Turkey. We were not part of the typical pop scene. We are more electronic rock and our lyrics stood out far from the norm,” Michael said.

The band expects to have a new album out by the end of the year.

To learn more about the band visit www.cemali.com.

Bill Silverfarb can be reached by email: silverfarb@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.