Amir-Hossein Maghsoudloo better known by his stage name Amir Tataloo, is an Iranian singer-songwriter.
Career
Tataloo, who initially started as an underground musician and remains unauthorized by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, was described by Time magazine as "a rapper with so many fans" and by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty as an artist with a "strong fan base" among the youth in Iran. His music style has been described as "popular flashy blend of pop, rap and R&B". In 2017, Tataloo briefly shifted to a conservative stance, encouraging his fans who call themselves "Tatalees", to vote for hardliners in 2017's presidential election. Tataloo left Iran in 2018 for Turkey. In January 2020 he was arrested and later released by the Turkish police following a drug-related Interpol request from Tehran. Tataloo's Instagram account, one of the most popular among Iranians, was permanently closed on 24 April 2020.
On 24 April 2020, Tataloo's popular Instagram account was shut down because he called for underage girls to join his harem and engage in sexual activity with him. Tataloo posted Instagram stories inviting children to have sex in his "harem" but deleted them a few hours after publication. However, screenshots of his posts were already taken and were sent to women's rights organizations, journalists, and Iranian and Turkish lawyers. Azadeh Akbari, a human rights activist who was instrumental in the closure of Tataloo's account, argued Tataloo's actions equated to child abuse. Tataloo responded by sexually harassing and insulting Akbari on social media. The messages were reported to the British police — Tataloo is planning to migrate to the United Kingdom. The spokesperson for Facebook, Instagram's parent company, made the following statement to the reporters: "The safety of members is our top priority, and we do not tolerate content that abuses or endangers children. We have blocked Amir Tataloo's account for violating our policies, and he will no longer be allowed to appear on Instagram.
Arrests
Tataloo was jailed three times in 2013, 2016 and 2020. Iranian morality police briefly arrested him in December 2013 for distributing his banned music to illegal foreign satellite channels. He was arrested again on 23 August 2016 and spent two months in prison because of insulting the judge in the court hearing, however, he was reportedly charged with "encouraging fasad and fahsha". His fans posted comments on social media accounts of the supreme leader of Iran, demanding his release. On 28 January 2020, Tataloo was preparing to travel to the UK, where he was expected to play a concert in February. Tataloo whose real name is 'Amirhossein Maghsoudloo', was detained by Turkish authorities in Istanbul after he was flagged as a wanted person by Interpol. Turkish authorities stated that they have acted on an "Interpol red notice" which was apparently issued by Iranian authorities – Iranian police have accused Tataloo of "encouraging citizens, especially the youth, to use drugs", according to a statement quoted by Iran's semi-official ISNA news agency.
''Nuclear Energy'' song
During the Iran/5+1 nuclear talks in Vienna, in July 2015, he released a song supporting the Iranian nuclear program. The music video was produced on the Iranian navy ship Damavand. Titled "Energy Hasteei", the song's central message was to uphold Iran's right to patrol the Persian Gulf and to produce peaceful nuclear energy. Tataloo's nationalistic song caused controversy among his Iranian fans who respected the artist for his frank, non-conformative political and social statements and were surprised to see him appearing to assist the government in their messaging around the nuclear issue.
He published an audio message in May 2017 on his Telegram channel, stating he "knew nothing about politics" and his political posts are forwarded by a friend in the IRGC Intelligence Organization with "enough political information to provide us with excellent guidance".
