Interview for Yasmine Vine

Your journey began in Iran, where women are legally forbidden to sing and dance. Looking back, what was the single defining moment that made you decide to leave everything behind and pursue your art in America?

I originally came to America at age 3 and returned to Iran at age 10 so I was already influenced by America and pop culture as a small child and I had already experienced freedom. It was like my life went from color to black and white so my goal was always to move back to America from the day I stepped foot in Iran. Also, the majority of people in Iran all wish to move to America. In America I was already taking dance classes and dreamed of being a performer and all of that was taken away once I moved to Iran so it was always my wish to come back to America and dance.

You started as a burlesque performer in Hollywood, which is a bold and liberating contrast from your upbringing. How did burlesque help you reclaim your voice, body, and identity as both a woman and an artist?

That is a very good question!  After years of being in Iran I had become very Muslim. I felt shame and had no confidence. Burlesque allowed me to be proud of my body and express myself fearlessly. Burlesque is adorning one’s body and dancing and stripping off layers. It also strips you from shame and fear of judgment. It is a celebration of one’s body in a fun, playful and often comedic manner combining dance and theatrics.  It also gave me a stage to master performance and gave me the opportunity to sing.

 

Your music has a fun, melodic, emotionally honest energy. When you write—do you begin with lyrics, rhythm, or a visual scene in your mind, and how does your Persian heritage influence your sound?

I start with lyrics that are accompanied by a melody. They just come to me. The first draft of the lyrics come just to make the melody known. That’s their job. Once the melody is set, I change or alter and “work on” the lyrics. I record the melody and final lyrics on my phone which then I give to a musician or music producer, and they build a track around it. Once the track is done, I go to a recording studio to record the song. I don’t know if my Persian background influences my songwriting. I have created a few songs with middle eastern sounds or beats, but it was done intentionally. Persian music is very melodic so that may have influenced me.

 

You’ve acted in projects ranging from short films to holiday specials and genre pieces. What attracts you to a film role first, the character, the story, the director, or something more instinctive?

 

Definitely the character! It’s important to me to always play roles that I enjoy being. With that said I have been cast in projects where I didn’t “love” the character, but I learned to through the process. After that the story is important to me. I like being apart of stories that are enjoyable for the audience to watch.

You’ve produced films and composed music, and now you’re writing your second screenplay based on your life. When you think about your story in film form, what is the message you want young women—especially those raised under restrictive systems—to take away from it?

To follow their hearts. The message would be that you don’t have to live life in a way that others tell you to live and that your heart is the best compass no matter what any person or religion tells you and to do it fearlessly.

 

n Social Distance and your other music-driven projects, you blend performance, visuals, and sound. Do you see yourself moving further into music-film hybrids, like musicals, concert films, or visual albums?

I really love musicals so that would be my ideal choice however I am open to all sorts of projects that provide creative expression that people would enjoy.

 

Hollywood can be difficult for women, and even more so for immigrant artists. What has been your toughest challenge in the industry—and what has been your most empowering victory so far?

I have encountered what some may call “scummy” individuals in the industry and people who want to take advantage of artists and that is what makes it difficult. A casting director also once said that I look too ethnic to play a Burlesque dancer in a film. There are also a lot of naysayers who try to make things difficult. An empowering victory, I would say would be community support. I am very blessed to have found communities of artists within Burlesque, Music, Writing and Acting that provide support for one another and create nourishing opportunities of growth for one another. 

 

You’ve experienced two very different worlds: Iran’s censorship and America’s freedom. If you could send one message back to the girls in Tehran who secretly sing in their bedrooms, what would you tell them?

That there is a way. There is always a way to do the things you love to do. There is a way out and that the power of imagination is greater than we know.

Interviews: https://endertalon.blogspot.com/2024/12/interviews-with-clinton-r.html