The Power of Music in Iran: Beyond Entertainment and Political Resistance

After four decades abroad, Iranian musician Bijan Mortazavi returned to his homeland in late September.

Mortazavi is one of Iran’s most celebrated violinists, singers, and composers.

In July 2026, he performed with his signature white violin at the FIFA World Cup closing ceremony alongside the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.

Videos posted by Mortazavi and his wife on social media show the couple walking through Tehran, where passersby warmly greet and welcome the musician.

Singer Mohsen Namjoo also recently returned to Iran after roughly two decades in exile.

Internationally renowned for his experimental Persian music, he blends traditional singing and poetic lyrics with elements of blues, rock, jazz, and folk.

In 2009, a Tehran court sentenced Namjoo in absentia to five years in prison.

He was accused of insulting holy sites and mocking Quranic verses, among other charges.

In a video posted online after his return, Namjoo stated he came back to spend more time with family and friends.

The Political Instrument of Return

On August 27, Abbas Salehi, Iran’s minister of culture and Islamic guidance, stated in an interview with the prominent Iranian outlet Farhikhtegan that his ministry had compiled a list of over 100 distinguished Iranians living abroad.

He stated that the goal was to remove obstacles to their travel or return to Iran.

Salehi stressed that even “critics of the Islamic Republic” could return at any time. He added, however, that returning does not necessarily mean they will perform in Iran; they could simply visit, the minister said.

Human rights lawyer Sina Yousefi pointed to international law, specifically Article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran is a signatory.

According to this provision, no one may be arbitrarily prevented from entering their own country, and this right cannot be contingent on a citizen’s loyalty to the government, he told DW.

“The idea of seeking out prominent figures—whom reformists believe are less likely to cross red lines—and recruiting them to collaborate or bring them back is not new,” said Sepideh Raissadat, an ethnomusicologist who has studied the history and development of Persian music for years.

As an internationally renowned performer of classical Persian music, she combines her artistic work with scholarly research, focusing her dissertation on the lives of Iranian female singers since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Iran uprising seen through the eyes of Iranian women

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

Between Control and Resistance

“The 1979 revolution in Iran was a revolution against music. Music was one of the red lines,” said Raissadat, referring to statements by the revolution’s leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who as early as July 1979 publicly described music as harmful to society and called for its complete abolition.

In a speech to employees of Radio Darya on July 21, 1979, Khomeini allegedly described music as “a betrayal of the country” and “a betrayal of the youth.” A few days later, the Iranian newspaper Keyhan quoted him as saying music was “like a drug” that must be completely eradicated.

During the Iran-Iraq War from 1980 to 1988, however, music made a comeback through revolutionary and religious songs, used to stir national pride and a sense of belonging.

The regime also failed to completely banish the female voice from the public sphere. “They couldn’t completely eliminate the voice of women. The female voice returned through choral singing,” Raissadat said.

However, the conflict between the state and music continued.

For years, musical instruments were banned from Iranian television, and instruments were confiscated or destroyed on the streets. Fearing repercussions, musicians refrained from carrying instruments in public, while some hid them in their cars.

“Listening to banned music at home was a political act, and when women began to sing, that too became a political act,” Raissadat noted. The development of Iranian pop music was also part of this political and cultural tension, she emphasized. “People began producing new domestic pop music to compete with music from Los Angeles.”

Over the past decade, social media—which is not entirely under government control—has become increasingly important and now wields considerable influence.

This shift is particularly evident among the youth, with young women now playing the guitar without headscarves and performing in public.

Iranian singer finds voice in Germany

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

Music as an Expression of Protest

Raissadat observes a particular trend among the families of the young people killed during the nationwide mass protests in late December 2025 and January 2026.

The demonstrations began on December 28, 2025, and were violently suppressed by security forces.

Human rights organizations report that thousands of protesters were killed, though exact figures remain unknown due to the extensive information blackout imposed by the regime.

“The most important thing we’ve seen in recent years is the use of music by the bereaved families of those killed in the protests. This stands in stark contrast to Shiite tradition and our history,” Raissadat said.

At some funerals, families turned the memorial service for their loved ones into a new form of protest.

Instead of religious hymns, music played, and mourners sang and danced along, creating a deliberate contrast to traditional religious mourning rituals, the musician said.

“Music became a weapon. Those who were mourning were able to connect with it on their own, and at the same time, it stood in opposition to the political system,” Raissadat pointed out, adding, “Dancing in white clothing also became an expression of this resistance.”

Source link