Ali Tabatabaee | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Tabatabaee performing with Zebrahead in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | (1973-02-27)February 27, 1973 (age 52) Tehran, Iran |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1996–present |
| Member of | Zebrahead |
Ali Tabatabaee (Persian:علی طباطبایی پور; born February 27, 1973)[1] is an Iranian-American musician who is one of two main vocalists in the rock bandZebrahead. Alongside bandmateMatty Lewis, he performed the titular character'stheme song for the 2006 video gameSonic the Hedgehog.[2]
Tabatabaee was born inTehran,Iran[1] on February 27, 1973. Before joiningZebrahead, Tabatabaee was a pre-med student atUC Irvine majoring in Biology and minoring in Theater. After graduating, he decided to take a year off from school to take theMCAT and to apply to medical school. It was during this time that he started singing with the other members of Zebrahead. After a year away from school he was accepted into theUniversity of Chicago Medical School. However, due to Zebrahead's early success, he deferred acceptance for one year. "I didn't expect music to go anywhere. I thought I'd do it for a year and then I'd leave, and in a week's period, I got an acceptance to med school and we were supposed to do a showcase and the label was going to fly us to New York and I had to tell the school; they wanted to know. So I deferred for a year and then decided that I didn't want to go back after a year.... I think [music is] the ultimate way to express culture. To do that for a living? Everybody should aspire to do that."[3] Tabatabaee cites some of his favorite bands asA Tribe Called Quest,System of a Down, andN.W.A.[4]
In 1999, while on the Warped Tour, Tabatabaee was diagnosed withHodgkin's Disease, a type of cancer, which he underwent chemo therapy and radiation therapy to cure. While being treated, he continued to work with his bandmates in writing songs for their album,Playmate of the Year, and a few months before the album's release, he completed his therapy. He claims that because of what he was going through, some of the songs from that album are very special to him.[3]
Tabatabaee is featured on theReel Big Fish DVDYou're All in This Together on the song "Unity" (originally byOperation Ivy).
Due to Zebrahead's growing popularity in Japan, Tabatabaee and Zebrahead bandmateMatty Lewis were asked bySega to record vocals for a new theme song, titled "His World", which appears in the 2006 gameSonic The Hedgehog. Tabatabaee also composes most of the songs that Zebrahead performs.
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