Believe it or not, Iran doesn't have the best track record of allowing Western music (and culture in general) onto the market. That's why when the government formally gave its seal of approval to the band Queen ten years ago, Iranians and music lovers the world over celebrated.
But why Queen? Doesn't a group that frequently sings about typical rock 'n' roll sexual debauchery, with plentiful references to the Christian version of God, seem like the antithesis of what Iran supports? Maybe so, but frontman Freddie Mercury was proud of his Persian heritage and never shied away from it. Iran opted, although 13 years after his death, to bit the bullet and let "Another One Bites The Dust" into the country.
If Iranian-born performers thought they were going to get the same treatment...dream on. It's still not the best place to launch a music career. Well, perhaps "launch," but not continue. That's why some of the country's best performers have now set up shop in nations outside of their homeland. Check out some examples of Iran's diverse musical output:
Leila Forouhar
Leila Forouhar was the daughter of a famous actor in Iran's film industry so you figure she'd have a leg up on the competition. Except for the whole "being a woman" thing. Despite that, she still established herself as a child actor and her family hoped the Iran-Iraq War would send their homeland back to its pre-Revolutionary standards. That didn't work out and the family fled to France, where Forouhar kept a low profile out of fear of assassination (Iran didn't approve much of expatriates). Finally she moved to Los Angeles and relaunched her music career for good and has released 17 albums since. Listen to the opening track from 2012's From My Heart: You'll be blown away by how her smoker's voice spoken word segments transform into a beautiful soprano.
Deep Dish
Deep Dish has been making house music since way before it got popular. In fact, the duo of Ali "Dubfire" Shirazania and Sharam Tayebi had split up in 2006 before house really starting bringing kids to concerts. The pair has recently reformed however and released a new single accordingly. New Yorkers can catch them at Space Ibiza New York for its Halloween party next week. Tayebi was born in Tehran and Shirazania in Mashad but the pair met in Washington D.C., the city they still consider their headquarters. The pair won a Grammy for their 2002 remix of Dido's "Thank You."
Shahin Najafi
Shahin Najafi was never going to work out in Iran: He was expelled from the University of Gilan in his home province for speaking out against the the school, and then he was banned from the country after just two illegal concerts. After moving to Germany, Najafi became one of the founding icons of Iranian hip-hop, a genre where most of the members live outside the title nation. It really hit the fan during 2012 when he released the track "Ay Naghi!," which poked fun at Imam Naghi, a revered holy figure. Multiple fatwas and calls for his execution were issued, and an Iranian website offered an $800,000 bounty on his head, none of which panned out fortunately. He also sings rock music, such as on his 2013 release Tramadol.
Laleh
Many Iranian performers found popularity in Europe after leaving their homeland. Laleh Pourkarim (just "Laleh" when she performs) was only one when her family left Iran for Azerbaijan, and then only 12 when she moved to Gothenburg in Sweden. She was a huge success right off the bat, with her self-titled debut becoming the highest-selling album in Sweden during 2005. Her 2012 album still charted at no. 1 on the Norwegian Albums chart but the lead single, "Some Die Young," got more attention. It stayed at no. 1 for eight weeks in Norway and became the country's 20th bestselling single of all time.
The Yellow Dogs
If any group on this list strikes a familiar chord with American readers, it's probably The Yellow Dogs. Unfortunately it's for all the wrong reasons. The band had gathered the attention of critics for its soundtrack contributions for the film No One Knows About Persian Cats, a film on the underground rock scene in Iran and the group moved itself to Brooklyn before brothers Soroush Farazmand (guitarist) and Arash Farazmand (drummer) were killed by a former associate during 2013. Although the band hasn't been formally disbanded, there hasn't been any comment on whether the post-punk group will try to pick up the pieces. A shame.
