NEW YORK (CNN) -- If you're Iranian, you probably know both and Akbar Ganji and Googoosh. You also know that 30 years ago they had as much in common as Rush Limbaugh and Madonna. The story of how they came together this week on a street corner in Manhattan for a hunger strike is a glimpse of the evolution of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 and the far-reaching impact of Iran's current opposition movement. Akbar Ganji went on a three-day hunger strike this week outside the U.N. to protest Iran's crackdown on dissidents. In 1979 no Iranian singer was more famous than Googoosh. She was Iran's Madonna, Sheryl Crow and Mariah Carey wrapped into one. She was rich, famous and adored by millions. Back then, the 29-year-old singer was also a symbol of an increasingly westernized Iran.
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Akbar Ganji was committed to the revolution in Iran before souring on the regime
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Googoosh was a superstar in Iran who went into exile after the 1979 revolution
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Ganji and Googoosh joined in a hunger strike this week in support of dissidents
"As an artist I have a voice, and I can ask the world to help our people," @placeholder told CNN.