When Afghan singer Farhad Darya performs for crowds in Australia, he does so to soothe souls, and protest the Taliban's ban on music.
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Mr Darya, who is in Sydney performing on the Australian leg of his tour, told AAP he wanted to be a voice for musicians in Afghanistan silenced by the Taliban.
"I want be a dissident voice. I go beyond keeping music alive, I work to nurture it," said Mr Darya, who left Afghanistan in 1990 and has been living in the US.
The Taliban effectively banned music when it took control of Afghanistan in the mid '90s. Music was revived after the regime was ousted in 2001, but musicians are falling silent again following the regime's recapture of Kabul last year after two decades of conflict.
"Through this tour, I want to stand against and oppose the ideology of the Taliban. I want to show my protest with a strong voice," he said.
Fittingly, the music tour is named Music Never Dies. Most people who attend his concerts are from the Afghan diaspora.
Sometimes referred to as the Afghan Elvis because he causes large crowds to sway, whistle and scream, Mr Darya has sold more than two million copies of his albums.
He has also worked with the UN to support the rights of children and women in Afghanistan.
Mr Darya was active in re-energising music in Afghanistan after the US and its allies toppled the Taliban in 2001.
His song, Kabul Jan - Beloved Kabul - was played on public radios and loud speakers, announcing the fall of the regime.
In 2004, the Afghan singer organised and played a concert for a capacity crowd at a football stadium in Kabul where the Taliban had previously carried out executions.
"You could see faces, full of love and smiling. One face was smiling and another was crying," he said. "It was a significant historical event, which I can't forget - it is part of mine and the country's history."
For almost two decades, he travelled from the US to Afghanistan to organise concerts across the country. But the music is being silenced again.
While Mr Darya is not allowed to perform in Afghanistan, he wants to keep Afghan music alive outside the country. He is planning concerts for North America, Europe and Asia.
"Music does not only heal wounded souls, it gives energy for a better life," he told AAP while on tour in Sydney.
"It helps people to overcome suffering."
Australian Associated Press
