Sayed Elyas Zahin

Sayed Elyas Zahin is a musician, hip-hop artist, and media manager from Afghanistan. Zahin’s music deals with social and political issues, including gender inequality and opposition to terrorist groups.

Since starting his musical career in 2014, Zahin has performed on TV and collaborated with other musicians and artists in Afghanistan. Between 2018-2019, he participated in the 14th season of ‘Afghan Star’, a singing competition broadcast by TOLO TV and one of the most popular TV shows in Afghanistan. As a result, Zahin gained recognition in the Afghan music scene and continued to perform on other popular TV shows, including ‘Attack Fight Night’, a free fighting TV show.

In 2019, Zahin also founded the first Afghan modelling agency ‘Modelstan’, working to develop the country’s fashion industry. In his role as Media Manager, Zahin promoted the agency and its beauty pageants, including ‘Mr and Miss Afghanistan’, something that had not been done since the 1990s. He also performed his music at events organised by ‘Modelstan’. Alongside his music and media manager engagements, Zahin also collaborated with the youth theater group Sundance and worked as freelance designer.

Performing hip-music, appearing on TV, and being involved with beauty pageants meant that Sayed Elyas Zahin became a target for the Taliban as well as conservative parts of Afghan society. After the fall of Kabul in 2021, Zahin went into hiding and left Afghanistan.

In December 2023, Sayed Elyas Zahin arrived in the Swedish city of Eskilstuna and took up an ICORN residency for the period 2023-2025. He continues his music and designer work, performing at public events and collaborating with Swedish artists.