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Here is the second installment of World Music Corner.
By Marc Gabriel Amigone
Since its genesis in the South Bronx in the 1980's, hip-hop has become one of America's most prolific exports reaching places you might expect, like Africa and Latin America, and places you might not, like Iran. Yas, a 27-year-old rapper from Tehran, first heard hip-hop at the age of 16 when his father started bringing him Tupac albums from his business trips abroad. Since then, he has become the first and only rapper to legally release his music in Iran and tour
internationally playing dates in Dubai, London, New York and Los Angeles.
Yas doesn't speak English, but once he heard the rhythm, rhyme schemes, emotion and passion in Tupac's voice, he was extremely affected by the power of hip-hop. When his father died abruptly, Yas became the sole provider for his family at the age of 18, and hip-hop was the only outlet for his emotion and anguish. "When I started to listen to the music and I heard the strength of his voice I really started to feel the energy of the music coming through. I really enjoyed the way he flowed and rhymed on the beat."
While Yas could feel the power and emotion of hip-hop without understanding the lyrics, it was when he began to translate Tupac songs that he realized the real power of hip-hop's message.
"After a while I started to pay closer attention to the music [and] I realized there was a lot more there to it, he was talking about real issues. I started to translate the lyrics and realized he's singing about society and the culture, about his perspective. I realized then that any kind of music that was going to stick around and have any kind of lasting effect had to say something real. It had to have a message and a deeper significance to it, in any kind of genre."
Persian culture has produced some of the world's most esteemed poets. Yas was inspired by Tupac's style and message, but he was also inspired by his own life and culture. "Hip-hop began in America, but Iran has had one of the longest traditions of poetry of any in the world. Poetry is in our blood. If he could sing about his life and pain and his culture, why couldn't I do the same thing in my own language, and that's where it all began."
Any music, books, or film to be released publicly in Iran have to be approved by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. I asked Yas why he's been able to get past the censorship, "The more you limit something the more it becomes popular. Rap is a new style of music in
Iran. The people that censor things don't acknowledge rap as something to be taken seriously just yet. Even though it's extremely popular."
Yas was quick to point out American hip-hop artists like Tupac faced similar barriers and biases. In the early 90's, Dan Quayle was only willing to acknowledge hip-hop as being obscene and offensive, denying its legitimacy as an art form. "Nobody wanted to believe that hip-hop
would be a legitimate art form, just like nobody would believe there'd be a black president in America just like Tupac said in Changes. He said we'd never see it. It's very interesting to see that changes are happening and no one would've believed hip-hop would be popular in Iran,
but now you walk down the street, and there isn't a single car that isn't listening to hip-hop."
Yas is an ambassador for music's ability to bridge gaps and break barriers. He would like to see the United States and Iran as allies and would like to use music and culture to facilitate that friendship, "I can see from coming to the US and having seen both sides, the people of Iran want peace and want good relations with America, and people over here want the same thing, from what I've seen. I think right now is a good time to open up a friendship and change directions. It's important that we use music to show that the people have no issues with each other, that the people have no problems with each other.
"Our two cultures are a great match. One of my goals when I'm here is to work with a great American rapper to help me get my message out to a wider audience. I'd like to take a step forward with American hiphop." Yas is cognizant of the international appeal of his music
and tries to stay conscious of that when he writes in order to appeal to as wide an audience as possible, "One of my main goals is to put Persian rap on the map, but my biggest goal is to get my voice out to the world. Why should it matter that my language happens to be Farsi? My words are about my culture but also about the world as a whole."
Check out Yas on Myspace and YouTube here and here.
See last week's World Music Corner about Modiba.
It all starts somewhere. The beginning of Persian hip-hop may be Yas.
http://www.myspace.com/yaspersian2
waiting for ur questions
Believe me I wish he were. I went and listened to a bunch of his work on YouTube. He's no better than you would find at any American junior-high talent show. At least there you would find some earnest experimentation and zany energy. Instead , Yas' dreary imitation of dated hip-hop is entirely derivative, from the inflection, to the "gang sign" moves. Sorry to be snarky, that's my honest opinion. See for yourself, it's pretty obvious.
Anyone know an actually good Iranian rapper?
His statement that "our two cultures have a great deal in common" is absolutely wrong and he is trying to please his American audiences in the hope of making his music acceptable.
I wish him success despite his naivite about American culture.
Rumi is his Western-given name. His name is Mowlana, the great Persian mystic-poet.
Explain yourself please.
Agreed. But, but, but, this report is also a part of that political demonization of Iranian culture and giving the impresion that just because an Iranian is copying an Ameican cultural product, it is good. Iranian indigenous culture is soooooo far superior in its severn thousand year existence that western implantations and copies do not improve it.
It seems that this young man is trying to make good money, I wish his best for that.
I remember in the 70's /80's when we were taught as Americans to fear Russians and I went there with friends only to discover that they liked us and didn't know why we feared them. They were cool too.
It's the same with Iranians I am sure... they have a very interesting and cool culture, (I love their diet), they certainly are good looking people, and the ones i know are very nice and fun to be with. I guess its good that they like some of our culture, but a real milestone would be if we discovered and appreciated some of their culture.