and his first record, Müren began to perform different songs on Turkish radios. His radio programs went on air for 15 years, most of which included live performances. Müren subsequently focused on giving concerts and recording new songs. He had his first live concert on 26 May 1955. He would usually wear his self-designed clothes on stage. He brought various innovations such as dressing uniforms and using T podium. Together with Behiye Aksoy, he performed at Maksim Casino for 11 years. In 1976, he became the first Turkish artist to perform at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Throughout his career, Müren recorded 600 cassettes and phonograph records. His first song recorded on a phonograph was "Bir Muhabbet Kuşu" by Şükrü Tunar. With his song "Manolyam" in 1955, Müren became the first Turkish artist to receive a gold certification. In 1991, he was chosen as a State Artist. Other ventures In 1965, he published a poetry book called Bıldırcın Yağmuru (The Quail Rain), which contains nearly 100 poems. Among the poems featured in this book are Pembe Yağmurlar (Pink Rains), Bursa Sokağı (Bursa Street), İkinci Sadık Dost, Çim Makası, Son Kavga (Last Fight), Bu Bestecikler Sana, Alınyazım, Kazancı Yokuşu and Kendimi Arıyorum. Personal life Zeki Müren never married. In the 1950s, with his special patterns of behavior, dressing and his performance on stage, he managed to keep people constantly interested in himself. In the early years of his career, he chose to wear ordinary clothes and hair styles, but later showed a favor for feminine-styled clothes, and performed with new hair styles and make-up. He never commented on his sexual orientation and occasionally his name appeared alongside that of women. The general opinion was that he was gay.Shidfar, Farhad (2005). "Gay musicians in Turkey". International Forum of Psychoanalysis, vol. 14(3–4) 224–226, Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group He was known to speak Turkish with a viscous accent. Referred to as the "Pasha of Music", in 1969, after his Aspendos concert, for the first time, he started being favored by the people of Antalya. He explained that although he was delighted because of their support, he still did not know why he was that much favored. He served as an assistant officer in Ankara Infantry School (6 months), Istanbul Harbiye Representative Office (6 months) and Çankırı (3 months) in 1957–1958. With Onur Akay's suggestion on TRT Music, Müren's date