Afghan pop star Aryana Sayeed launches ‘Ladies Only’ European tour

Afghan pop star and women’s rights activist Aryana Sayeed has launched a women-only European concert tour to bring Afghan women together, raise awareness about their struggles and speak out against the Taliban’s restrictions on women and girls.

Sayeed, one of Afghanistan’s biggest music stars, began her ‘Ladies Only’ tour in Rotterdam on Friday, performing at the Laurenskerk. She is scheduled to perform in Stockholm on September 5, Hamburg on September 26 and Wiesbaden, near Frankfurt, on October 3.

Sayeed rose to prominence as a singer and outspoken advocate for women’s rights and also became known as a judge on The Voice Afghanistan and other major talent shows.

Her career changed dramatically when the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021. She fled the country and has since been unable to return or perform there. From abroad, she has continued her activism through her music and her organisation, Defenders of Equality, Freedom, and Advancement for Women (DEFAW).

Sayeed said she had been planning a women-only tour for three or four years. The idea took shape after the Taliban imposed restrictions that, she said, prevented girls from attending school beyond grade six and women from working or even visiting parks.

“I thought initially it would be a great idea to do this Ladies-Only concert where we show the power of women, where we stand together as women, and raise our voice and raise awareness against the injustices that are going on in Afghanistan,” she said.

She said the concerts were also intended to stand up for the “millions of voiceless women in Afghanistan”.

Sayeed said her work in Afghanistan over the past 15 years had had a significant effect on society, particularly by giving women hope and encouraging them to understand and stand up for their rights.

As well as her singing career, she had worked as an activist and appeared as a judge on talent shows before the Taliban takeover. She noted that Afghan women did not have full rights even before the Taliban returned to power, although she felt conditions had been improving.

While Sayeed had performed internationally even when she was living in Afghanistan, she said she now felt isolated because she could no longer return home or appear on television to deliver messages of support and hope to Afghan women.

DEFAW has allowed her to continue her activism from abroad. She said women in Afghanistan could still connect with her through YouTube and other online platforms.

“I still have all these platforms where women can be connected with me, so they can still hear me, they can still see my videos,” she said.

Sayeed said she speaks to around 100 Afghan women and girls inside Afghanistan each month through Zoom via her organisation. She said their stories were often heartbreaking, with many feeling hopeless and useless after being excluded from education and employment.

According to Sayeed, some women marry at a young age because they see no future and believe they have no other choice.

She said women who have no husband or other source of financial support face particularly difficult circumstances because they are not allowed to work.

“It’s really sad to hear all these stories,” she said.

Despite the situation, Sayeed said she believed the restrictions would not last forever.

“I do feel from the bottom of my heart that these dark days will pass. They will not exist forever,” she said, adding that people would eventually raise their voices and stand against the restrictions.

Sayeed also called on Afghan men, both inside Afghanistan and living abroad, to support women’s rights.

“I have a strong feeling that unless Afghan men come together and stand up for the women, women alone cannot do much for themselves,” she said.

She said she had seen Afghan men participate in protests in countries including Germany and the United States, describing their involvement as a positive sign.

Musically, Sayeed primarily performs pop, having started with R&B before moving into pop music. She also performs traditional Afghan songs.

She recalled returning to Afghanistan in 2011 and combining older songs with new music. The positive response from audiences showed her that traditional music still held an important place for Afghan listeners.

A significant portion of her music is dedicated to the rights of Afghan women. She has performed some of those songs at the European Parliament, UNICEF and government gatherings.

Sayeed said this was the part of her career she enjoyed the most because the music gave her a sense of fulfilment.

She also spoke against the growing use of artificial intelligence in music, saying she found the technology frightening and believed it risked diminishing the human element of music.

“I feel like the human touch should exist, and it should be there,” she said.

Sayeed said she did not use or support AI, particularly because technology can now recreate singers’ voices and produce videos featuring them when they are not actually present.

“I don't like AI, and I don't use it, and I'm not for it. I don't support it at all,” she said.