Bahram Nouraei (; born 25 April 1988), professionally known as Bahram () is a

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

recording artist and

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

from

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

currently living in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. He is one of the premier hip hop artists in

ian

underground music Underground music is music with practices perceived as outside, or somehow opposed to, Popular music, mainstream popular music culture. Underground styles lack the commercial success of popular music movements, and may involve the use of avant-g ...

and

hip hop movement Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music Music genre, genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African Americans, African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide r ...

and considered to be one of the 50 most influential people in the culture of the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

Music career

Bahram Nouraei's first breakthrough hit was a

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

single track called "Nameyee Be Rayees Jomhour" (in English: A letter to the president) in 2007 which was written in the form of an

open letter An open letter is a Letter (message), letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally. Open letters usually take the form of a letter (mess ...

criticizing the sixth

president of Iran The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran () is the head of government of the Iran, Islamic Republic of Iran and the second highest-ranking official, after the Supreme Leader of Iran, supreme leader. The 1980 Iranian presidential election, fi ...

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (born Mahmoud Sabbaghian on 28 October 1956) is an Iranian Iranian principlists, principlist and Iranian nationalism, nationalist politician who served as the sixth president of Iran from 2005 to 2013. He is currently a mem ...

. His debut album "24 Sa'at" (In Persian: ''24 ساعت'') (In English: 24 Hours) released in August 2008 containing the track "Inja Irane" (In Persian: ''اینجا ایرانه'') (In English: Here's

) which is described as a powerful commentary on modern-day of Iran by

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

. His second

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

"Sokoot" (In Persian: ''سکوت'') (In English: Silence) released in 2011 containing the first Iranian abstract hip hop track called "''Khorshid Khanoom''" (In Persian: ''خورشید خانم'') (In English: Lady Sunshine) written in the form of a

monologue In theatre, a monologue (also known as monolog in North American English) (in , from μόνος ''mónos'', "alone, solitary" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts ...

with the

sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as visible light a ...

in a chronological order.

Good Mistake

Bahram's third LP album "Eshtebahe Khoob" (In Persian: ''اشتباه خوب'') (In English: Good Mistake) is the first Iranian

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

ever made using

reverse chronology Reverse chronology is a narrative structure and method of storytelling whereby the plot is revealed in reverse order. In a story employing this technique, the first scene shown is actually the conclusion to the plot. Once that scene ends, the ...

as the

storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing narrative, stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatre, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cul ...

method. The album has been commonly produced by Bahram Nouraei and Mahdyar Aghajani and sponsored by Cultures of Resistance Network Foundation. Good Mistake is independently released on

4th of July Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

2015 and ranked #4 and #6 on Billboard's Top World Albums Chart for the last two weeks of July 2015. The project is also followed by a collection of artworks designed exclusively for each and every track in order to provide visual interpretations for the album.

Gozaar

Bahram's EP album called "Gozaar" (In Persian: ''گذار'') (In English: Transition) was released at the same time as the Iranian New Year (on March 22, 2020). Produced by Nesa Azadikhah, Ashkan Mousavi and Peymandegar.

Khodha

Bahram's LP album called "Khodha" (In Persian: ''خودها'') (In English: Selves) was released by Peeleh on April 13, 2023, produced by Ashkan Mousavi, Peymandegar and Nesa Azadikhah. The album dominated all 12 top spots on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

Hot&New chart. Bahram has attempted to explore the concepts of "conscious" and "unconscious" through a conceptual album, using

Jung Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and psychologist who founded the school of analytical psychology. A prolific author of over 20 books, illustrator, and correspondent, Jung was a c ...

's " Theory of Shadows" Employing metaphors such as the "

mirror A mirror, also known as a looking glass, is an object that Reflection (physics), reflects an image. Light that bounces off a mirror forms an image of whatever is in front of it, which is then focused through the lens of the eye or a camera ...

", " pig" and "

self In philosophy, the self is an individual's own being, knowledge, and values, and the relationship between these attributes. The first-person perspective distinguishes selfhood from personal identity. Whereas "identity" is (literally) same ...

", he delves into societal issues stemming from insufficient

self-awareness In philosophy of self, philosophy, self-awareness is the awareness and reflection of one's own personality or individuality, including traits, feelings, and behaviors. It is not to be confused with consciousness in the sense of qualia. While ...

at the individual level, aiming to address them.

Activism

In 2009 Bahram spent one week in

Evin prison Evin Prison () is a prison located in the Evin neighborhood of Tehran, Iran. The prison has been the primary site for detaining Iran's political prisoners since 1972, before and after the Iranian Revolution, in a purpose-built wing nicknamed "E ...

which houses

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although ...

s. Bahram was accused for illegal cultural activism but luckily set free. He has also appeared in a

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

called "Bahram: An Iranian Rapper" intended to present the

scene in Iran and explain the

Iranian culture The culture of Iran () or culture of PersiaYarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) is one of the oldest and among the most influential in the world. Iran (Persia) is widely regarded as one of the cradles of civilization.

after the

Islamic revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Im ...

. The film was presented in an independent film festival called San Francisco's

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theater, cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online. Films may be of recent ...

at the San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) in September 2011.

Discography

Albums

* ''24 Sa'at , 24 Hours (Aug 2008)'' :01. "24 Sa'at" :02. "Man" :03. "Khiyaboon" :04. "Rahe Man" :05. "Inja Irane" :06. "Gele Nakon" :07. "Delnevesht" :08. "Bikhialesh" :09. "Afsoos" * ''Sokoot , Silence (May 2011)'' :01. "Intro" :02. "Jalebe" :03. "Harfaye Man" :04. "Az Man Bepors" :05. "Mano Bebakhsh" :06. "Dar Naro" :07. "Yeki Tomast Yeki Gorg" :08. "Nasle Man" :09. "Be Chi Eteghad Dari" :10. "Khorshid Khanoom" :11. "Ye Hes" :12. "Yaghi" :13. "Ajib" :14. "Outro" * ''Eshtebahe Khoob , Good Mistake'' (July 2015) :01. "Khoob" :02. "Saz" :03. "Lams" :04. "Naghsh" :05. "Negah" :06. "Jang" :07. "Tekrar" :08. "Niaz" :09. "Zakhm" :10. "Rishe" :11. "Momken" :12. "Mordab" :13. "Sooz" :14. "Boresh" :15. "Solh" :16. "Eshtebah" * ''Gozaar , Transition'' (March 2020) :01. "Ghahghara" :02. "Charkheh" :03. "Omgh" :04. "Moghabeleh" :05. "Adam" * ''Khodha , Selves'' (April 2023) :01. "Khodha" :02. "Naadideh" :03. "Ye Chizi Mord" :04. "Khoon" :05. "Gom" :06. "Bala Oftadan" :07. "Ayneh" :08. "Peyda" :09. "Birokh" :10. "Soo Soo" :11. "Gheyre Ine Mage" :12. "Madreseye Khook Ha"

Single Tracks

* Nameyee Be Rayees Jomhoor (In Persian: ''نامه‌ای به رییس جمهور'') (In English: ''A letter to the president'') (2007) * Ma Ba Hamim (Feat. Reza Pishro) (In Persian: ''ما با همیم'') (In English: ''We're together'') (2007) * Paye Kaar (Feat. Nimosh) (2007) * Marge Rap e Fars (Feat. Tighe & Suchmeh) (In Persian: ''مرگ رپ فارس'') (In English: ''Death of Persian Rap'') (2007) * Ino Befahm (Feat. Erfan) (In Persian: ''اینو بفهم'') (In English: ''Realize It'') (2010) * Goosht (Prod. Peymandegar) (In Persian: ''گوشت'') (In English: ''Meat'') (2019) * Oboor Kon (In Persian: ''عبور کن'') (In English: ''Pass Through'') ( Askhan Mousavi Feat. Bahram) (Prod. Ashkan Mousavi) (2020) * Beshno (In Persian: ''بشنو'') (In English: ''Listen'') (Prod. Peymandegar) (2021) * Daagh (In Persian: ''داغ'') (In English: ''Hot'') (Prod. HOLLY) (2023) * Begoosham (Feat. Bamdad) (In Persian: ''بگوشم'') (Prod. Peymandegar) (2024)