The Bob Dylan of Iran

Mohsen Namjoo—a.k.a. “Bob Dylan of Iran,” according to the The New York Times—will perform tomorrow evening at Portland State’s Lincoln Recital Hall.

“[Namjoo] is a young, talented artist with a very unique style,” said Anousha Sedighi, associate professor in the World Languages and Literature Department. “In addition to writing his own songs, he uses Persian poetry from hundreds of years ago as his lyrics. In that sense, he is mixing past with present.”

Sedighi added that Namjoo also plays many traditional Persian instruments and implements a modern style of music, thereby mixing East with West.

Namjoo is an Iranian artist, singer, songwriter and music scholar based in California. Born in 1976 in Torbat-e Jam, Iran, he began studying music at the age of twelve and studied music and theatre at the University of Tehran in 1994. He started recording his work in 2003.

Sedighi has been on the PSU faculty since 2005. Her interest in and involvement with the Persian Studies program has been essential in organizing the event.

“PARSA Community Foundation has awarded a grant to PSU to support Persian Studies, and a portion of it is for organizing community events in order to raise awareness about Iran,” Sedighi said. “We have decided to organize a Persian concert to bring attention to the beautiful aspects of Persian culture.”

Here, Mohsen Namjoo speaks about his distinctive musical style and the April 20 performance.

Vanguard: What is your process when you are writing songs?
Mohsen Namjoo: Songs are products of various spontaneous moments of my life. These events could be either of far away memories or recent encounters. That said, sometimes a melody influences the process of writing a song. 

VG: What do you hope to convey with your music?
MN: My goal is to express myself and experiment with the interplay of Iranian music with other world musical and literary forms. 

VG: How would you describe your work? 
MN: Like the work of almost all artists, my work describes my inner self, and I juxtapose that with the outer world through musical and poetic elements. 

VG: Are you excited to be performing in Portland?
MN: Yes!

VG: Is there anything else you would like to add?
MN: It’s my pleasure to play for my friends in Portland again for the second time in less than a year, and thanks to the university and those involved in making it happen!