Turkish pop group manifest surprise Isle of Wight students

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The six-member girl group performed at Newport’s Medina Theatre for Medina College students after IW Festival promoter John Giddings brought them to the Island.

The visit came during a busy period for the group, who are preparing to play their first UK concert at London’s OVO Arena Wembley on Friday, October 16.

manifest was formed through the Big5 Turkiye competition in 2025 and comprises Esin Bahat, Hilal Yelekçi, Lidya Pınar, Mina Solak, Sueda Uluca and Zeynep Sude Oktay.

manifest's Lidya Pınar and Esin Bahat performing on the Isle of Wight at Medina Theatre (Image: IWCP)

In just over 18 months, manifest has attracted about 6.7 million monthly Spotify listeners and more than four billion YouTube views.

At Medina Theatre, manifest delivered an energetic performance of two songs for students, complete with the choreography that has become a major part of their live shows.

One was Tralala, manifest’s first English-language single, due for release on Friday, October 9, giving the students an early listen to the unreleased track.

Students cheered the performance, including Abbie Carver, who arrived with a homemade manifest sign she made with her dad.

Abbie Carver, 15, with her manifest sign and friends

Abbie had never heard of manifest before the college announced the visit, but became hooked after listening to their music.

Afterwards, manifest stayed on stage to answer questions from students about their music, dancing, inspirations and how they cope with nerves before major performances.

A student asked what advice they had for young people hoping to follow in their footsteps.

“Start dreaming and believe in yourself,” the group told them, urging students to practise and chase their ambitions.

manifest's Mina Solak, Zeynep Sude Oktay and Sueda Uluca performing on the Isle of Wight at Medina Theatre (Image: IWCP)

Asked if they still get nervous before going on stage, the group admitted Wembley was on their minds.

“We do get nervous, especially for Wembley,” they said.

“We make sure to rest and prepare well. When you get out on stage, all of the blurry thinking goes away.”

Several members had dance backgrounds before joining Big5 Turkiye, and said combining choreography with music was central to manifest.

“We love performing on the stage, and we see ourselves as entertainers,” they said.

“We want to perform with the dancing and singing together. It makes it more striking, so we dance a lot.”