June 20, 2026
An Iranian court sentenced a prominent singer named Parastoo Ahmadi and a group of seven fellow artists to 74 lashes each after they livestreamed a performance on YouTube, according to her videographer and local media.
The concert featured Ahmadi singing powerful, mournful songs to an empty audience, on a dimly-lit stage adorned solely with a large Persian carpet in the grounds of a traditional caravanserai complex.
Ahmadi was backed by a pianist, drummer, guitarist and bassist.
All the musicians wore black, with Ahmadi dressed in a long, strappy gown and wearing deep red lipstick, in a country where women are banned from singing in public.
