Rostam Batmanglij

Rostam Batmanglij is a gay Iranian-American musician, songwriter, and producer, born in 1983 in Washington, D.C., to Iranian parents; his older brother is filmmaker Zal Batmanglij. He was a founding member and primary multi-instrumentalist of Vampire Weekend, with whom he wrote and produced four albums, including the Grammy-winning Modern Vampires of the City (2013), before leaving the band in 2016 to focus on solo work and outside production. He first spoke publicly about being gay in a 2009 Rolling Stone feature and more fully in a 2010 interview with Out magazine, revealing that he had aimed to write gay-themed songs for Vampire Weekend, including "Diplomat's Son" from Contra (2010), and had hoped the band's earlier song "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" might become a gay anthem. He has since released solo albums and produced music for artists including Frank Ocean, Solange, and Charli XCX.