Focus On Music: Hindi Pop

Indian pop music, sometimes known as Indipop or Hindi pop is pop music of India. Basically, it is Indian folk or classical music, influenced by beats from different parts of the world. Indian pop was reletavely non-existent until the late 1970s to early 1980s. The major push to bring South Asian music into a "pop" motif was Pakistani singer Nazia Hassan.

Several Indians have gained popularity in mainstream popular western music, especially rock. In fact, one of the greatest artists in classic Rock, Freddie Mercury, was of Indian origin and started his first band in an Indian boarding school. Other popular rock musicians include Kim Thayil and Dave Baksh. Also, Tony Kanal of the group No Doubt is Indian. Grammy-winning jazz singer Norah Jones is half-Indian, her father being sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar.

click any track below to listen

Focus On Music: Persia Goes Pop

In the 1990s, Iranian officials decided to produce and promote a "decent" pop music to compete with the informal mainstream Persian pop music, mostly produced in California (so-called "LA-type" music). Ali Moallem (a poet) and Fereydoun Shahbazian (a renowned musician) headed a council at IRIB that supervised the revival of domestic pop music. Singers such as Shadmehr Aghili, Khashayar Etemadi, Mohammad Isfahani, were among the first singers who got significant support, including promotion by national TV, to produce new pop songs. Domestic pop music received a warm welcome by many people, while it was criticized by the elites as "superficial music" (in the sense of lyrics, music, and the cultural impact). Unhappy with common trends, Shahbazian decided to quit and officially join the critics of this music after a while.

Recently, as a result of easing cultural restrictions within Iran, a number of Persian pop singers have emerged from within the country.

At the end of 2009, Sirvan Khosravi was the first (domestic) Iranian artist to get high-rotation airplay on a regular radio station in Europe. He made his debut with the title song of his second album Saate 9, which also made headlines in the Iranian on-line media.

click any track below to listen