His music has been influenced by various artists, including The Beatles, Cat Stevens, Donovan and Bob Dylan.

During this time, he worked as a chemical engineer at companies like Pfizer and Netaş Telecom.

During 1985, Ortaçgil played with Fikret Kızılok at "Çekirdek Müzikevi"; this performance yielded to a non-published copy album "Bizim Şarkılarımız …".

The album gathered some of his old band friends such as Erkan Oğur, Cem Aksel and Gürol Ağırbaş, who had been playing together for over 10 years.

In 2000, a tribute album called "Şarkılar bir Oyundur" (Songs Are a Game) was published, featuring performances from 22 different Turkish singers and bands, spanning a wide genre of music among them.