Parissa Tosif on memory, diaspora and the subtle power of cultural expression

Parissa Tosif. Photo credit: Golam Reza Sadeghnia, Anita Beikpour.

Yasmine Hosseini (member of Melbourne, Naarm based post punk act dogworld) caught up with Parissa Tosif to talk about her deeply personal new album I have this memory of you - an exploration of identity shaped between cultures, languages, and generations. Blending Persian instrumentation with modern pop influences, her work moves fluidly between memory and imagination, tracing the contours of a homeland she’s never seen but feels intrinsically tied to. Parissa reflects on diaspora, the quiet power of storytelling, and how music becomes a vessel for connection, healing, and self-discovery.

Listen to Parissa Tosif’s debut LP: I have this memory of you out now.

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Yasmine: This album is incredibly special, and really impacted me as a fellow Iranian who grew up in the Western world. Can you encapsulate what this album means to you in a sentence or two?

Parissa: Thank you so much so special to hear that! This album is a reflection of my journey to connect to a homeland I've never been to as a second generation Iranian Australian and learn the stories of the people and places that shape me. 

Yasmine: I really love the interplay of Persian/Farsi elements with English and modern pop influences. How did you go about alternating between these languages and styles? Did you consciously identify which parts you wanted to keep in Farsi, and vice versa, or did it come about more naturally?

Parissa: A lot of this album was unintentional - it felt right in the moment and so it happened. This applies also to the instrumentation. These songs were my way of exploring my heritage, including the music. I began experimenting with integrating the very basic level of Persian music I was learning at the time (awaz and rhythm lessons) and slowly felt out where to integrate more and less. You’ll hear electronic western drums and then overlays of daf and tonbak for example. The album is a capture of me in this exploration as a person of the diaspora - a mash up of little pieces of Persian and western cultures and sounds, lyrics that explore and figure out concepts in real time and stories that weave and blend it all together. 

Yasmine: Was this the first time you’ve worked with Persian musicians and instruments in the studio? What was that experience like for you?

Parissa: It was my first time exploring live Persian music yes! My producer Andrew Grant and I wrote basic percussion parts electronically, and then had the most beautiful experience for a week in Melbourne where three incredible musicians Misagh Zamani, Parham Kebria and Rodan Fujiie came in and played and wrote various percussion parts live using Iranian drums (daf and tonbak) and Misagh also played the oud and duduk (a flute). I set up the sessions to allow for magic and spontaneity while still trying to capture the exact parts we wanted. We left with so many beautiful and incredible moments of music and instrumentation which the incredible Andrew finessed into what you hear today. 

Yasmine: The album engages deeply with memory. What role or power does memory hold for people who have grown up in the diaspora, and what is your own relationship with memory?

Parissa: Because I’ve never been to Iran, I hold close the memories my family members and friends have of their lives there, in the past or currently. Many of my family members were forced to escape Iran and build new lives in new places following the 1979 revolution. I also know many friends and family who are living through the inexplicable challenge and horror of the current times. All of these experiences and stories have generously been shared with me and I hold them as ways to connect to a place I've never been. The one thing I’ve realised is that due to Iran’s political and social situation, many people, including the diaspora seem to forget the humanity of the Iranian people, their kindness, hospitality, wittiness, individuality, artistic natures and so much more. This population is more than what we see in the news. I hope my project can also shed light on this part of memory. 

Yasmine: Building on that, what feels special or important about music, and art more broadly, as a vessel for exploring and expressing identity?

Parissa: My experience has been that music allows me to transcend our physical reality and imagine worlds, feelings and concepts that I can’t without it. Writing lyrics for example have opened my mind to certain images that helped me understand my history better. 

Yasmine: The album opens with voice notes from your mother and closes with a song that I understand to be about your daughter. Was this a deliberate framing? What significance does that hold for you?

Parissa: I wanted to gift this work to my daughter so that throughout life she could be reminded of the incredible women that have shaped how incredible she is. I want her to know where she comes from and know she is loved.

Yasmine: Lastly, now that this body of work is complete and released, how have you felt about this moment and its reception? Has this influenced what you want to do next as an artist?

Parissa: It has reinforced how unique the second generation experience is and privileged I am to be an artist and be able to use art as a method of exploring reality. Without it I don't know how I would be able to get through seeing the current pain Iranian people are going through. From what people have told me it is beginning to connect cultures and bring healing which was always my goal. 

Listen to I have this memory of you below.