1 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:07,320 Speaker 1: Once upon a time in Afghanistan, the Taliban band music. 2 00:00:09,240 --> 00:00:14,040 Speaker 2: Radios were smashed, instruments burned, people buried their televisions and 3 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:18,880 Speaker 2: cassette tapes six feet under and for five years there 4 00:00:19,120 --> 00:00:19,800 Speaker 2: was silence. 5 00:00:24,800 --> 00:00:29,040 Speaker 1: But one man, Daoud Sadiki, refused to bow down. He 6 00:00:29,160 --> 00:00:32,120 Speaker 1: risked his life to join an underground network of people 7 00:00:32,280 --> 00:00:35,760 Speaker 1: smuggling music and movies around the country. 8 00:00:36,320 --> 00:00:39,760 Speaker 3: Moving a VCR from one house to another house, moving 9 00:00:39,840 --> 00:00:43,000 Speaker 3: a TV. It was kind of like you moving a 10 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:45,080 Speaker 3: track full of drugs. 11 00:00:46,280 --> 00:00:50,880 Speaker 1: And when the Taliban regime finally found, Daoud helped kickstart 12 00:00:51,159 --> 00:00:57,840 Speaker 1: a revolution, a revolution in the form of an Afghan 13 00:00:57,920 --> 00:01:01,440 Speaker 1: version of American idol called Afghanistan. 14 00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:07,080 Speaker 4: I was a celebrity of the country. 15 00:01:07,600 --> 00:01:10,520 Speaker 3: Everywhere I was like on the skies. 16 00:01:17,440 --> 00:01:20,600 Speaker 4: It was something new, like never before in the history 17 00:01:20,640 --> 00:01:21,360 Speaker 4: of Afghanistan. 18 00:01:21,800 --> 00:01:27,160 Speaker 5: There was performing between all the insecurities and all the 19 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:31,880 Speaker 5: explosions and all the disappointment. That was a light in 20 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:34,320 Speaker 5: the darkness. 21 00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 6: Asthma Bolajourny, the Asthmaso bolajourn. 22 00:01:45,319 --> 00:01:52,400 Speaker 1: Over the next decade, Afghanstar taught millions of people how 23 00:01:52,480 --> 00:01:56,559 Speaker 1: to vote. It bridged ethnic divide and became a platform 24 00:01:56,840 --> 00:02:00,480 Speaker 1: for women to fight for equal rights. It was a 25 00:02:00,600 --> 00:02:03,840 Speaker 1: symbol of the new Afghanistan. 26 00:02:04,000 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 4: Freedom and freedom feels very good. It was a lightning rod. 27 00:02:09,360 --> 00:02:11,880 Speaker 1: I think it was called Devil's Star by some people, 28 00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,800 Speaker 1: and those people were hell bent on crushing the show 29 00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:25,360 Speaker 1: and everything it stood for. If you asked the Taliban member, 30 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:29,040 Speaker 1: what would you change the most in Afghanistan, people would 31 00:02:29,040 --> 00:02:30,639 Speaker 1: say Afghanistan. 32 00:02:31,400 --> 00:02:35,440 Speaker 4: And they actually sat on this TV show that my 33 00:02:35,880 --> 00:02:39,680 Speaker 4: head should be cut off. And whoever that cuts off 34 00:02:39,760 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 4: my head and brings it to them, they will go 35 00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:42,080 Speaker 4: to heaven. 36 00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:49,520 Speaker 1: So the Afghanistar team were faced with a choice save 37 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:53,239 Speaker 1: their show and use pop culture to fight off the Taliban, 38 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:58,239 Speaker 1: or flee the country and save themselves. 39 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:05,919 Speaker 6: As my John oh. 40 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:13,160 Speaker 4: Joy, we cannot let them win. We cannot let the 41 00:03:13,320 --> 00:03:16,320 Speaker 4: darkness come over us again. We have to fight back. 42 00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:20,280 Speaker 4: We have to fight back with music. That's how we 43 00:03:20,360 --> 00:03:20,800 Speaker 4: can fight. 44 00:03:23,840 --> 00:03:28,000 Speaker 1: I'm John Legend. Listen to Afghanstar on the iHeartRadio app, 45 00:03:28,200 --> 00:03:31,200 Speaker 1: Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. 46 00:03:32,360 --> 00:03:36,200 Speaker 6: Manos a la John for