Abjeez

History

ABJEEZ (slang for Sisters in Persian) was initially formed in Östersund and expanded in Stockholm, Sweden with older sister, Melody, writing lyrics in Persian and Safoura composing the music. In Stockholm, the Safavi sisters found backing musicians from Sweden, Norway, Scotland and Chile.

Their lyrics often carry humorous and subversive cultural and political messages. Their genre of music has be described as a blend of Iranian soul rhythms with reggae, rock, ska, and flamenco. They sing mostly in their native Persian, with a few exceptions in Swedish, Spanish, and English.

Critical acclaim

Critics have described Abjeez as the first female-led Persian-speaking Reggae/Ska band and pioneers for singing about taboo subjects in Persian language, Iranian culture, and even American foreign policy and the war on terror. Abjeez were subjects of a 2009 documentary film titled "Systrar (Sisters)" by Swedish film-maker Henrik Perälä.

The most consistent subject matters voiced in Abjeez music are issues related to gender, women's rights and youth in Iran.

Their debut music video Eddeaa (meaning "Pretension" in English) was nominated in the short film category at Tribeca Film Festival in New York City in 2007. It was also selected as the best music video of the year at Link TV’s world music channel in 2007. The band has performed in various music and film festivals such as the Rotterdam Film Festival in the Netherlands.

Abjeez have been described by various commentators as one of the most successful Iranian music groups of the 2000s, performing at sold-out concerts across Europe and North America, including at the legendary Roxy Theater in Los Angeles, California in December 2010.

Band members

Discography