Post-Islamic Revolution

With the Islamic Revolution of 1979 came a drastic change in the expression of music in Iran. Firstly, Islamic laws on the permissibility of music certainly impeded its practice in many situations. In addition to the limits placed on what types of music could be created and listened to, perhaps the most noticeable change was the exclusion (or serious inhibition) of women in music. To this day, women's participation in the art of music is noticeably less than that of their male counterparts. Female singers who manage to be heard are only able to do so with the backing support of a group of male vocalists, as a woman's solo voice is not permissible.

One result of these limitations is the emergence of a large underground music scene, which gives rise to genres such as heavy metal and Western-like pop music which are forbidden by the government. The theocracy's suffocating grip on music (as well as other arts) has also manifested itself by the emigration of artists to other countries. For example, many of the currently famous Iranian musicians are located outside of the country, in places such as Los Angeles.

موسیقی ایرانی بعد از انقلاب اسلام خیلی عوض شد. دولت ایران ستمگر بود و به موسیقی ضد انقلابی یا نا نجیب اجازه نمی داد. خیلی از نوازندگان از ایران مهاجرت کردند که بتوانند موسیقیشان را ادامه بدهند. حتا امروز، خانمها نمی توانند تنها بخوانند و نیاز دارند که مردان  با آنها بخوانند

Pictures of an Iranian musician outside of the country (left) and an underground Iranian band (right)

Video of a live performance of underground Iranian heavy metal