In Iran, pop culture is strictly controlled by a bureaucracy of Islamic
clerics, and playing or distributing music involves
jumping through many hoops: (Salon)
the council considers two main questions
when trying to decide whether a song will undermine the Islamic Republic,
says a council official, sitting in his office. "First, any music that's related to
the style of the previous regime, when the Shah was in power -- the style
before the revolution -- is forbidden," he says. That would rule out much of
the music played by Iranians living in the United States. But the second factor
is far more important, he says: "If the music makes you want to jump up and
dance, it is not acceptable. Even if they are not singing words, if the meaning of
the music itself is to make you jump and dance, it cannot be approved."