Andranik Madadian (, ; born April 22, 1958), better known by his stage name Andy, is an

Armenian-Iranian Iranian Armenians (; ), also known as Persian Armenians (; ), are Iranians of Armenian ethnicity who may speak Armenian as their first language. Estimates of their number in Iran range from 70,000 to 500,000. Areas with a high concentration o ...

singer-songwriter and actor. He immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and currently lives in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. He sings in several languages including

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

Career

Duo in Andy and Kouros

Andy first gained recognition when he joined

Kouros Shahmiri Kouros Shahmiri (), also known by the mononym "Kouros" (Persian: ), is an Iranian–American pop singer, best known for being part of the pop duo Andy & Kouros with Andranik Madadian (Andy). Andy and Kouros released four albums together: ''Khas ...

and they formed the successful duo

Andy & Kouros Andy & Kouros (Persian: ) were an Iranian pop duo formed together in 1985, composed of Andranik "Andy" Madadian and Kouros Shahmiri. Andy and Kouros released four albums: ''Khastegary'' (1985), ''Parvaz'' (1987), the hugely successful ''Balla' ...

, going on to release 4 albums together: ''Khastegary'' (1985), ''Parvaz'' (1987), the hugely successful album ''Balla'' (1990), and ''Goodbye'' (1991). The two split in 1992, with both Andy and Kouros going on to have successful individual solo careers. The two reunited several times after that. In 2002 and 2004, they performed together for a sold-out audience in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

. In 2009, Andy & Kouros went on an international tour together in the

Iranian diaspora The Iranian diaspora (collectively known as Iranian Expatriate, expats or expatriates) is the global population of Demographics of Iran, Iranian citizens or people of Iranian descent living outside Iran. In 2021, the Ministry of Foreign Affair ...

, and performed together again in May 2010. They also appeared together on a music video by Farez, remaking their hit "Niloufar".

Solo career

Andy has released 16 albums as a solo artist. His last three singles have ranked No. 1 in the charts. In 2013, Andy was nominated for Best Male Artist, Best Live Act, and Best Entertainer of the Year at the World Music Awards. The following year, he was presented with the "Millennium" award at the Big Apple Music Awards in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. On January 17, 2020, Andy was honored by the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

, with the 2,684th star.

Other collaborations

On June 24, 2009, Andy,

Richie Sambora Richard Stephen Sambora (born July 11, 1959) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Bon Jovi from 1983 to 2013. He and lead singer Jon Bon Jovi formed the main songwriting unit for the ...

and

Jon Bon Jovi John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and Lead vocalist, frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was fo ...

recorded a version of the

Leiber Leiber is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Fridolin Leiber (1853–1912), German painter *Fritz Leiber (1910–1992), American writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction. * Fritz Leiber, Sr. (1882–1949), American ac ...

and Stoller standard Stand by Me, described by producer

Don Was Don Edward Fagenson (born September 13, 1952), known professionally as Don Was (), is an American musician, record producer, music director, film composer, documentary filmmaker and radio host. Since 2011, he has also served as president of the ...

as a " worldwide solidarity with the people of Iran". The

introduction is done by both Andy and Jon Bon Jovi, and the rest of the song continues in English. The record was produced by Don Was and John Shanks and was registered at Henson Studio C,

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a neighborhood and district in the central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. Its name has become synonymous with the U.S. film industry and the peo ...

. He participated in a prestigious recording session for World Peace One, which featured some of the world's most successful artists uniting to promote peace. In 2014, Cherokee Music Productions released the humanitarian single, ''We Hear Your Voice'' which brought together 15 international stars from 11 countries to inspire fans and followers to find common ground and heal the divide between nations. In March 2016, Andy released a duet with

La Toya Jackson La Toya Yvonne Jackson (born May 29, 1956) is an American singer and television personality. The fifth child and middle daughter of the Jackson family, Jackson first gained recognition on the family's variety television series, ''The Jacksons (TV ...

called "Tehran". In April 2019, Andy released a duet with Algerian singer Khaled called "Salama So Good". In January 2020, Andy released an English song titled "The Good Fight", which was featured in the motion picture "American Fighter“.

Personal life

Andy married his longtime girlfriend and artist Shani Rigsbee on November 11, 2011. Around 1992, the couple began working and touring together. Soon after, they discovered Shani had

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different ...

, and she had an early

hysterectomy Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus and cervix. Supracervical hysterectomy refers to removal of the uterus while the cervix is spared. These procedures may also involve removal of the ovaries (oophorectomy), fallopian tubes ( salpi ...

in 1992. The couple is associated with cancer-related charities and has performed together for the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

's Relay for Life.

Awards and honors

On January 17, 2020, Madadian was awarded the 2,684th star on the

, becoming the first Iranian to receive the honor. His star is located at Highland Avenue at 6810 Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. * Best International Album,

Armenian Music Awards Armenian Music Awards was an annual music awards ceremony first held at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, California on October 7, 1998. It was created and produced for the first eight years by Peter Bahlawanian who wanted to support Armenian artist ...

(2004) * Best International Album,

(2006)

Discography

Albums

Andy & Kouros

Andy

Non-album singles and collaborations

Videos/DVDs

* The Journey * Orere Seero * Platinum * City of Angels * Balla! * Andy Live at the Kodak Theatre

Filmography

Gallery

Andy - Persian New Year - Oberhausen Arena - Nowruz - March 2014.JPG, Andy in a Persian New Year Concert,

Arena Oberhausen The Rudolf Weber-Arena (originally the Arena Oberhausen) is a multipurpose arena, located in Oberhausen, Germany. Opening in September 1996, the arena is a part of the leisure and shopping center, Westfield Centro, CentrO. The venue was built in ...

, March 2014

References

Sources

*Tehran Magazine. ''Choose the Best: Andy, Mansour, or Shahram Kashani'' Issue 476. Page 72-76

External links

*
Andy Madadian Official
on Facebook
Andy Madadian
on Twitter
Andymusic1
on

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

Andy Madadian
on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

ANDY Lovers Forum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Andy 1958 births Living people 20th-century Iranian male singers Iranian pop singers Iranian singer-songwriters Iranian male singer-songwriters American male pop singers American male singer-songwriters Armenian-language singers of Iran Ethnic Armenian male actors Singers from Tehran Exiles of the Iranian Revolution in the United States Iranian people of Armenian descent Caltex Records artists Taraneh Records artists Naturalized citizens of the United States