An Iranian court has sentenced popular underground singer Amir Hossein Maghsoudloo, better known as Tataloo, to death on appeal after his conviction for blasphemy, according to local media outlets. The reformist newspaper Etemad reported that the Iranian Supreme Court accepted the prosecutor’s appeal, overturning a previous five-year prison sentence for offenses that included blasphemy. The revised verdict sentenced Tataloo to death for insulting Prophet Muhammad.

The report indicated that the decision was not final, and the sentence could still be contested. The 37-year-old artist, who had been residing in Istanbul since 2018, was handed over to Iranian authorities by Turkish police in December 2023. He has been in detention in Iran since then.

In addition to the blasphemy charges, Tataloo had previously been sentenced to 10 years in prison for promoting “prostitution” and faced additional charges for spreading “propaganda” against the Islamic Republic and sharing “obscene content.” The heavily tattooed musician, known for blending rap, pop, and R&B, had once been courted by conservative politicians in Iran as a means of engaging with younger, more liberal Iranians.

Tataloo’s public image had been controversial, notably when he met with the ultra-conservative Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in 2017, a meeting that was widely considered awkward. Raisi tragically died in a helicopter crash years later. In 2015, Tataloo also released a song supporting Iran’s nuclear program, which became a focal point after President Donald Trump’s election in 2018.