"Footage of a street performance of The White Stripes ' 2003 classic "Seven Nation Army" in Tehran, Iran, has gone viral - even catching the attention of Jack White himself. In the clip, uploaded to Instagram by journalist Afshin Ismaeli, a group of men and women (mostly not wearing hijabs) can be seen gathering on the sidewalk and dancing to the performance. After the video went viral, it was reposted to Jack White and The White Stripes' official Instagram accounts with the simple caption, "'Seven Nation Army' performed in the streets of Tehran.""
"Since the 2022-2023 protests over the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody for allegedly violating Iran's mandatory hijab law, the government under the current president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has voiced intentions to ease strict enforcement. Specifically, Pezeshkian himself has said the morality police "were not supposed to confront" women. In March 2025, however, the UN Human Rights Council reported that Iran "continues to ramp up efforts to restrict the rights of women and girls," despite such public assurances."
A street performance of The White Stripes' 'Seven Nation Army' in Tehran went viral and received reposts on official Jack White and White Stripes Instagram accounts. The clip shows men and women, mostly not wearing hijabs, gathering on a sidewalk and dancing to the performance. An Iranian singer named Arshia claimed his band organized the performance in the comments. The moment occurs after the 2022-2023 protests over Mahsa Amini's death and amid mixed government signals about easing morality-police enforcement and UN findings of increased restrictions on women and girls. The performance offered a visible glimpse of joy and freedom through music during heightened regional tensions.
Read at Consequence
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