Hajipour, who gained international recognition and a Special Merit Award for Best Song for Social Change at the 2023 Grammys for the song, was detained in Sari, Mazandaran Province by security forces in September 2022 and released on bail that October. His song became an anthem of protests sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini that evolved into a broader movement calling for greater freedoms and even an overthrow of the state.The court’s verdict extends beyond the prison sentence, imposing additional penalties deemed necessary to reflect the “gravity of Hajipour’s actions,” HRANA said. For two years following his imprisonment, Hajipour is barred from leaving Iran.
