Music and politics: Iran, hip hop and anti-militarism

Salome MC grew up in Iran and currently resides in the USA. She is a music producer, composer and multimedia artist. She is also on the advisory board for Iran in the American anti-war organisation Code Pink. Most famously she is known as having been Iran's first woman to be a hip hop MC and rapper. Salome joins Solidarity to discuss her journey into hip hop and self-expression, her ambivalence about how the label "political" has been used to describe her music, and why she has retreated from the public eye (and ear) to focusing on producing music with other rappers' voices. She also explains her steadfast anti-war and anti-sanctions position, rooted in a fundamental trust of the judgement and self-determination of ordinary people in Iran and worldwide, and in a belief that children's lives are precious—without qualification.* Music credits: Javid x Salome MC, "Virij." Seven Climes, Vol. 1. https://salome-mc.bandcamp.com/track/virij.  Iman Tarek x Salome MC, "Ghafes." Seven Climes, Vol. 1. https://salome-mc.bandcamp.com/track/ghafes.  Follow and support Salome on Bandcamp: https://salome-mc.bandcamp.com/.  Article Salome MC, "Why Antimilitarism is Not a Partisan Position." Pink Tank Blog, https://www.codepink.org/why_antimilitarism_is_not_a_partisan_position.  *This episode was recorded a week after the large-scale siege in Gaza began in October 2023.