You rarely meet a musician who risks life because of his music. Iranian singer and poet Shahin Najafi was forced to flee to Germany in 2004 – when he was 24 – after his country’s authorities apparently grew angry with his socially and politically loaded lyrics. But even from abroad he has continued his controversial commentary – which the song “Sha’aban” also represents.

“Sha’aban is not a real person but is a live reality in Iran and the world,” Shahin Najafi tells beehype when we ask him about the meaning of the song. “We just have to look at the poverty statistics and – especially in Iran – to review the workers’ situation. This song is a description of workers’ poverty.”

You can find more music from Shahin Najafi on his Soundcloud channel. He’s also on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.