Iranian pop icon Gugush says she is ‘waiting for regime change to happen soon’

Iranian singer Googoosh has said she is “waiting for regime change to happen soon” as the country faces Nationwide protests erupt again over economic hardship and political repression.

“I live in anxiety and hope day and night” veteran pop idol said in an interview the times Published on Friday.

“We are waiting for regime change to happen soon. The people are being brutally suppressed. The killings have not stopped. The situation cannot wait any longer.”

this current unrest exist Iran Starting on December 28, 2025, Initially driven by increasing economic hardship, including soaring inflationthe value of the rial fell sharply and food prices rose. They soon turned political, with protesters demanding an end to clerical rule.

At least 65 people were killed in clashes with police, according to human rights groups. Iranian authorities also cut off internet access and international phone communications.

Googoosh, whose real name is Faegheh Atashin, was one of Iran’s most famous singers and actresses before the 1979 Islamic Revolution. After the overthrow of King Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, women were banned from singing in public and popular music was severely restricted.

“What happened to me is why I want to be a voice for young people now,” she said. “They said singing was sinful and music was forbidden. They condemned Gugush for remaining silent her whole life, so I tried to bury her.”

The 75-year-old pop icon described being summoned for questioning, accused of corrupt Western influence and repeatedly questioned as to why she sang certain songs or performed for certain people. She was imprisoned for a month in Tehran’s Evin prison with other women, ranging from actresses to doctors, and spent weeks singing quietly to other inmates so that guards wouldn’t hear.

“I thought they were going to kill me,” she said. “I saw how many other women were arrested and executed. I didn’t know why they weren’t doing it.”

She was released but was forced to sign a statement promising not to sing, perform or attend social or political gatherings and was placed under house arrest.

In 2000, she was able to leave the country and perform in Canada, where she discovered that decades of enforced silence had not erased her influence. She performed in front of an audience of nearly 20,000, her first public performance since she was 29 years old.

However, this also meant she could never return home. She was warned “you’d better stay away” after appearing on US television without a headscarf. She has since lived in several cities before settling in Los Angeles, home to the largest Iranian community outside of Iran.

“It’s a better life in every way,” she said. “I have everything they took from me. I will sing for the people who are still in Iran. I will sing for them here.”

She recently announced that she would no longer perform in public until “my people are free.”

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned on Saturday that maintaining security was a “red line” and the military vowed to protect public property while religious institutions stepped up efforts to crack down on the most widespread protests in years.

It comes after U.S. President Donald Trump issued a new warning to Iran’s leaders on Friday and Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared on Saturday: “The United States stands with the brave people of Iran.” Authorities accused the United States and Israel of fomenting “unrest.” Rights groups have documented the deaths of dozens of protesters.