a b o u t: S h a h r z a d S e p a n l o u

When Shahrzad came onto the music scene in 1997 as one third of the original female band, Silhouette, she quickly proved herself as a passionate and serious artist. The Album “Earth, Wind and Fire” together with Silhouette’s subsequent U.S. tour was a highly successful achievement for the newly arrived group. In 2000, with her debut solo album “Our Story” and the release of her videos such as “Mirdamad”, she further impressed audiences and critics alike and established herself as a visionary singer possessing a tender vocal style and a range of emotions that are expressed unpretentiously in her songs and videos. She was immediately invited to numerous interviews and appearances on Persian Television and Radio Stations and received a number of offers for concerts and performances around the world. The first concert of her tour, scheduled on September 15, 2001 in Irvine, CA, was a sell-out well before the performance. But her plans for touring the States abruptly came to a halt with the events of September 11. She placed the performances on hold and instead began to concentrate on preparing her second album entitled “1001 nights” which will be released in August/September of 2003 by Avang Music Company.
As a child, Shahrzad loved to sing and act for friends and family and when alone, performed in front of a mirror or in her backyard for an imaginary audience. Early on, through her mother and father, who are artists, Shahrzad was exposed to a wide variety of music, films, plays and books. Bolstered by those influences, Shahrzad began gravitating towards pop and world music and formed a well-rounded and eclectic musical taste while at the same time taking part in small theatrical and musical productions at her school and community events.
A native of Iran and having moved to Europe and then to America as a teenager, Shahrzad possesses a great amount of love, sensitivity and respect for different cultures, people and art. Shahrzad’s study of Sociology at UCLA further helped her in understanding and appreciating eclectic and diverse cultures. Her life experiences have exposed her to new musical influences and sounds which she uses for her music and which are particularly heard on her upcoming album.
Shahrzad is always involved with the process of album making. From the lyrics chosen and the musical direction of her albums, to the instruments and arrangements used, she likes to work side by side her present producer/song-writer, Farzin Farhadi, in order to help implement her vision and her direction. She has worked with renowned lyricists and poets such as Zoya Zakarian, Paksima Zakipour, Partow Nooriala (her mother) and M.A. Sepanlou (her father) and is always on the lookout for new and talented artists to work with such as Kambiz Mirzaei whose lyrics appear on one of Shahrzad’s songs on her new album. In addition to working on Persian music, Shahrzad sings and writes lyrics in English and has been working with an Italian producer on an album consisting of world music. The project is still in the works and will be on Shahrzad’s list of priorities to accomplish. Shahrzad’s tour of the U.S., Europe and the Middle East for “1001 Nights” will commence with the release of her album in late 2003