Rostam Batmanglij ( fa, رستم باتمانقلیچ, ; born November 28, 1983), known

mononymously A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. In some cases, a mononym selected by an individual may have originally been from a polynym, a word which refers to one o ...

as Rostam, is an American record producer, musician, singer, songwriter, and composer. He was a founding member of the band

Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend is an American rock band from New York City, formed in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson, ...

, whose first three albums he produced. He has been described by

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

as one of the greatest pop and indie-rock producers of his generation. Rostam also works as a solo artist and is a member of electro-soul group

Discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discovery ...

. He produced his first number-one album, Vampire Weekend's ''

Contra Contra may refer to: Places * Contra, Virginia * Contra Costa Canal, an aqueduct in the U.S. state of California * Contra Costa County, California * Tenero-Contra, a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland ...

'', when he was 27 years old. Batmanglij has been nominated for three

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

: twice for

Best Alternative Music Album The Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums in the alternative genre at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Ho ...

with

(winning for ''

Modern Vampires of the City ''Modern Vampires of the City'' is the third studio album by American indie rock band Vampire Weekend. It was released on May 14, 2013, by XL Recordings. The group began to write songs for the album during soundchecks on the supporting concert t ...

'') and once for

Album of the Year Album of the Year, often abbreviated to AOTY, may refer to: Awards * ARIA Award for Album of the Year, Australia * Brit Award for British Album of the Year, UK * Grammy Award for Album of the Year, US * Juno Award for Album of the Year, CA * Lati ...

as producer of

Haim The name ''Haim'' can be a first name or surname originating in the Hebrew language, or deriving from the Old German name ''Haimo''. Hebrew etymology Chayyim ( he, חַיִּים ', Classical Hebrew: , Israeli Hebrew: ), also transcribed ''Haim ...

's ''

Women in Music Pt. III ''Women in Music Pt. III'' is the third studio album by American rock band Haim. It was released on June 26, 2020, in the United States by Columbia Records and internationally by Polydor Records. The album was originally set for release on April 24 ...

''.

Early life

Batmanglij was born to Iranian parents, and grew up in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

His mother is cookbook author

Najmieh Batmanglij Najmieh Khalili Batmanglij ( fa, نجمیه خلیلی باتمانقلیج, ) is an Iranian-American chef and cookbook author. Born in Tehran, she fled the Iranian Revolution in 1979, moving first to France, then the United States, building ...

, while his father is a publisher. His parents arrived in D.C. in 1983. His brother is independent filmmaker

Zal Batmanglij Zal Batmanglij (Persian: زال باتمانقلیچ; born on April 28, 1981) is an American film director and screenwriter. He directed and co-wrote the 2011 film ''Sound of My Voice'' and the 2013 film '' The East'', both of which premiered at ...

. The two have collaborated on multiple projects. They worked together on the film ''

Sound of My Voice ''Sound of My Voice'' is a 2011 American psychological thriller film directed by Zal Batmanglij in his feature directorial debut and starring Christopher Denham, Nicole Vicius and Brit Marling. The plot focuses on two documentary filmmakers wh ...

'', which Rostam scored and which Zal directed and co-wrote. Rostam also composed an original piece for piano that was featured in Zal's film '' The East''. Most recently, Rostam composed the music for both seasons of Zal's television series ''

The OA ''The OA'' is an American mystery drama television series with science fiction, supernatural, and fantasy elements. ''The OA'' debuted on Netflix on December 16, 2016. Created and executive produced by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, the series ...

''.

Musical career

Vampire Weekend

Batmanglij majored in music at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, where he joined the band

in 2006. "At Columbia, I would study classical harmony in classes and I would study music on my own, and I would try to re-create songs that I love in recordings...that was really how I learned." The name of the group comes from the movie of the same name that bandmate

Ezra Koenig Ezra Michael Koenig ( ; born April 8, 1984) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, producer, and internet radio personality. He is best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of indie rock band Vampire Weekend. Additio ...

and his friends made over summer vacations. Batmanglij produced their self-titled debut album shortly after graduation while concurrently working multiple full-time jobs. He also produced the band's follow-up album, ''

'', which sold 124,000 copies in its first week and landed atop the ''Billboard'' 200 charts. Batmanglij plays guitar, keyboard and sings in the band but also acts as a lyricist and songwriter, co-writing the song "Diplomat's Son" on ''

''. Koenig has described himself and Batmanglij as "the two main songwriters in the band". On March 18, 2013, Vampire Weekend released two songs from their album ''

'', "Diane Young" and "Step". Within two weeks each song had garnered more than 1 million views on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

. Music for both songs is credited to Batmanglij and Koenig, and lyrics are credited to Koenig. ''Modern Vampires of the City'' is the first Vampire Weekend album Batmanglij did not produce alone; for this record he collaborated with longtime friend

Ariel Rechtshaid Ariel Rechtshaid ( ;) is an American record producer, audio engineer, mixing engineer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. His accolades include three Grammy Awards for music production. Rechtshaid was the lead singer and guitarist of the ska ...

to co-produce the album together. It was released May 14, 2013. On January 26, 2016, Batmanglij announced on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that he had left Vampire Weekend to pursue solo projects, but that he would continue to collaborate with Koenig on future projects and Vampire Weekend songs.

Discovery

Batmanglij began recording with

Ra Ra Riot Ra Ra Riot is an American indie rock band consisting of vocalist Wes Miles, bassist Mathieu Santos, guitarist Milo Bonacci, violinist Rebecca Zeller and drummer Kenny Bernard. History Ra Ra Riot formed in January 2006, playing at houses and ven ...

vocalist Wes Miles on a project which was later to become

. They released their debut album, ''LP'', through XL Recordings on July 7, 2009. The album features guest vocal contributions from Koenig as well as

Angel Deradoorian Angel Deradoorian (born July 18, 1986), also known mononymously as Deradoorian, is a musician based in Los Angeles, California. She is best known for her work with Dirty Projectors as full-time member from 2007 to 2012. She left to pursue a solo ...

Dirty Projectors Dirty Projectors is an American indie rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002. The band is the project of singer-songwriter David Longstreth, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The b ...

. In 2015, Batmanglij produced and contributed vocals on the song "Water" for

's fourth album, '' Need Your Light''.

Solo work

In September 2011, Batmanglij released a solo track called "Wood". ''

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an enginee ...

Chicago''s Brent DiCrescenzo gave the song 4 out of 5 stars and wrote that "his voice pleasantly recalls a drowsy

David Byrne David Byrne (; born 14 May 1952) is a Scottish-American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, writer, music theorist, visual artist and filmmaker. He was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of ...

". On November 1, 2011,

Zane Lowe Alexander Zane Reid Lowe (born 7 August 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence thro ...

debuted another a solo song sung by Batmanglij called "Don't Let it Get to You" as the Hottest Record in the World on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

. ''

The Fader ''The Fader'' (stylized as ''FADER'') is a magazine based in New York City that was launched in 1999 by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. It was the first print publication to be released on iTunes. It is o ...

'' referred to it as "a seismic event of a song". In January 2016, Batmanglij released the song "EOS" along with its music video which he had directed. On March 11, 2016, Batmanglij released the song "Gravity Don't Pull Me" along with its music video directed by himself and Josh Goleman. The video was filmed at ''The 1896'' and features dancers Jack Grabow and Sam Asa Pratt. On November 27, 2016, Rostam teased his new solo album, which was to be released in 2017. In the spring of 2017, Rostam released two songs from the album: "Gwan", released on April 26, and "Bike Dream", released on June 14. With the release of "Bike Dream", Rostam revealed that his debut solo album would be titled '' Half-Light'' and released on September 8, 2017. On September 12, 2018, Rostam self-released a new single, "In a River". On October 15, 2020, Rostam self-released another new single, "Unfold You". On February 2, 2021, Rostam self-released a single, "These Kids We Knew", and teased an upcoming album release. Exactly one month later, Batmanglij confirmed the release of his second solo album, titled ''Changephobia'', on June 4, as well as releasing a single from the album called "4Runner".

Collaborative work

In 2010,

Converse Converse may refer to: Mathematics and logic * Converse (logic), the result of reversing the two parts of a definite or implicational statement ** Converse implication, the converse of a material implication ** Converse nonimplication, a logical c ...

released "All Summer", produced by Batmanglij and featuring

Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Yo ...

and Bethany Cosentino of

Best Coast Best Coast is an American rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 2009. The band consists of songwriter, guitarist and vocalist Bethany Cosentino and guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno. Cosentino, a former child actress, began w ...

. Batmanglij produced and co-wrote two songs for

the Walkmen The Walkmen is an American indie rock band. Active from 2000 to 2013, they are known as part of the 2000s-era post-punk revival in New York City, particularly for their critically acclaimed single "The Rat (song), The Rat." The band is made up o ...

frontman

Hamilton Leithauser James Hamilton Leithauser (born April 15, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. From 2000 to 2014, he was the lead vocalist of the American indie rock band The Walkmen, with whom he recorded seven studio albums. Prior ...

's solo album, '' Black Hours'', which was released in June 2014. Also in 2014, Batmanglij produced two songs for singer

Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is an English singer and songwriter. Born in Cambridge and raised in Start Hill, Essex, she began posting songs on Myspace in 2008, which led to her discovery ...

. The song "Need Ur Luv" appears on her album ''

Sucker Sucker may refer to: General use * Lollipop or sucker, a type of confection * Sucker (slang), a slang term for a very gullible person * Hard candy ** Cough drop ** Mint (candy) Biology * Sucker (botany), a term for a shoot that arises undergro ...

'', and the song "Kingdom", featuring

Simon Le Bon Simon John Charles Le Bon (born 27 October 1958) is a British singer. He is best known as the lead vocalist and lyricist of the new wave band Duran Duran and its offshoot Arcadia. Le Bon has received three Ivor Novello Awards from the British ...

, appears on '' The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack''. In December 2014, Batmanglij along with

Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...

and

Ed Droste Edward Droste (born October 22, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter and musician, formerly of the rock band Grizzly Bear. The group began as the solo effort of Droste with the release of 2004's '' Horn of Plenty'', originally released on Kanin ...

remixed

Ty Dolla Sign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He first gained major recognition in 2010 for his feature on Ameri ...

's "Stand For" into a new song titled "Long Way Home". Batmanglij also wrote original music for a play by

Kenneth Lonergan Kenneth Lonergan (born October 16, 1962) is an American film director, playwright, and screenwriter. He is the co-writer of the film ''Gangs of New York'' (2002), and wrote and directed '' You Can Count on Me'' (2000), ''Margaret'' (2011), and ' ...

called ''

This Is Our Youth ''This Is Our Youth'' is a play by American dramatist and screenwriter Kenneth Lonergan. It premiered Off-Broadway in 1996 and since been produced all over the world, including the West End, Broadway Sydney and Toronto. Plot The play takes pla ...

'', starring

Kieran Culkin Kieran Kyle Culkin (born September 30, 1982) is an American actor. The brother of actors Macaulay and Rory, he began his career as a child actor in the films ''Home Alone'' (1990), ''Father of the Bride'' (1991)'', The Mighty'' (1998), and ''Th ...

Michael Cera Michael Austin Cera (; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor and musician. He started his career as a child actor, voicing the character of Brother Bear on the children's television show ''The Berenstain Bears (2003 TV series), The Berenstain ...

, and

Tavi Gevinson Tavi Gevinson (born April 21, 1996) is an American actress, writer, and magazine editor. She came to public attention at the age of 12 due to her fashion blog Style Rookie. By the age of 15, she had shifted her focus to pop culture and feminist d ...

, which premiered on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

in 2014. In 2015, Batmanglij worked alongside Canadian singer

Carly Rae Jepsen Carly Rae Jepsen (born November 21, 1985) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. After studying musical theatre for most of her school life and while in university, Jepsen garnered mainstream attention after placing third on the fifth season of ...

on her third studio album, ''Emotion''. In an interview with ''

'', Jepsen described working with Batmanglij as writing with a musician she admires, and said that together they had made "what’s maybe one of erfavorite songs" on the record. Batmanglij produced and co-wrote the fourth single, "Warm Blood", which was released on July 31, 2015. ''Emotion'' was released worldwide on August 21, 2015. In 2016, he formed Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam with Hamilton Leithauser of the Walkmen. They released the single "1000 Times" in July 2016, which they performed on ''

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Spartina Productions and CBS Studios, it is the second it ...

'' on September 12, 2016. Their song "In a Black Out" was featured in a commercial for the Apple

iPhone 7 The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are smartphones that were designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. They are the tenth generation of the iPhone. They were announced on September 7, 2016, at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Fran ...

. Their debut album, ''

I Had a Dream That You Were Mine ''I Had a Dream That You Were Mine'' is a collaborative studio album by Hamilton Leithauser, the former frontman of The Walkmen, and Rostam, the multi-instrumentalist and former producer of Vampire Weekend. It was released on September 23, 2016 on ...

'', was released on September 23, 2016. Batmanglij produced and co-wrote the song "Listen to Your Friends" from English singer

Declan McKenna Declan Benedict McKenna (born 24 December 1998) is an English singer-songwriter. He initially gained recognition for winning the Glastonbury Festival's Emerging Talent Competition in 2015. McKenna self-released the song "Brazil", a protest son ...

's debut album, '' What Do You Think About the Car?'', which was released in July 2017.

Personal life

Batmanglij is gay and talked about his sexual orientation in the magazine ''

Out Out may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 * ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander * ''Out'' (2002 film), a Japanese film ba ...

''. In an Instagram post in 2015, he said that

of the band

Grizzly Bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...

influenced his decision to publicly come out.

Discography

Solo work

Albums

*'' Half-Light'' (2017) *''Changephobia'' (2021)

Singles

With Vampire Weekend

* ''

'' (2008) * ''

'' (2010) * ''

'' (2013)

As primary producer

Discovery * '' LP'' (2009) Hamilton Leithauser and Rostam * ''

'' (2016) Clairo * ''

Immunity Immunity may refer to: Medicine * Immunity (medical), resistance of an organism to infection or disease * ''Immunity'' (journal), a scientific journal published by Cell Press Biology * Immune system Engineering * Radiofrequence immunity desc ...

'' (2019) Haim * ''

'' (2020)

Other contributions

Compositions for film and theatre

* ''

'' (2011) – film score * '' The East'' (2013) – "Doc's Song" (original piano composition for the film) * ''

'' ( Steppenwolf production on

, fall 2014) – original score * ''

'' (television series) (2016) – main theme and score

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Batmanglij, Rostam 1983 births Living people American indie rock musicians American people of Iranian descent Columbia College (New York) alumni Columbia University School of the Arts alumni Dirty Projectors members American gay musicians Grammy Award winners LGBT American people of Asian descent LGBT people from Washington, D.C. LGBT songwriters Musicians from Washington, D.C. Vampire Weekend members Glassnote Records artists 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people