For the first time, Saudi Arabia hosted the prestigious Music Cities Awards in Riyadh, as part of the highly anticipated Riyadh Music Week. This global event celebrates impactful initiatives that leverage music as a tool to drive economic, social, environmental, and cultural development in cities worldwide. A Global Platform for Musical Innovation Launched in 2020, the Music Cities Awards have established themselves as a premier global platform to honor groundbreaking initiatives using music to enhance community development. This annual eve…
The countdown has begun for the Billboard Arab Music Awards 2024, an event poised to honor outstanding achievements in Arab music. Scheduled to take place on December 11, this inaugural awards ceremony will be a highlight of the first-ever Riyadh Music Week. The event celebrates Arab and North African artists whose works have achieved remarkable success on global streaming platforms. With over 30 categories, it promises to showcase the diversity and richness of the Arab music scene. The full list of finalists has been revealed. Song of the Y…
Emirates has announced a partnership with Spotify, enabling passengers to access curated playlists and podcasts directly through its inflight entertainment system, ice. Starting today, Emirates customers can select from a range of Spotify's curated music and podcasts as part of the airline's inflight offering. Ian Geller, Spotify's VP of Business Development, commented on the partnership: "At Spotify, we want to be everywhere our listeners are, so we’re thrilled to partner with Emirates to deliver best-in-class playlist and …
Music Loves Threads is a newly announced initiative aimed at enhancing how music artists in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region connect with their audiences. The program is designed to extend audio-visual expression from popular platforms like Instagram and Facebook to Meta's latest social app, Threads, which focuses on deeper community engagement. While still in the early stages, Music Loves Threads encourages artists to use Threads for more meaningful interactions with their fans. By sharing behind-the-scenes content, exclusiv…
ESMAA, has reached a groundbreaking music licensing agreement with Anghami, the leading MENA-focused streaming platform. This partnership marks a significant moment for the region’s music industry, as it represents the first deal of its kind between international independent music publishers and a local streaming service in the MENA region. ESMAA represents the extensive catalog of MENA-based music publisher PopArabia, including a wealth of Arabic music and global sub-published repertoire. The organization also manages the rights of IMPEL, a c…
On September 10, 2024, Billboard Arabia announced the inaugural edition of its music awards, set to take place on December 11 at the King Fahd Cultural Center in Riyadh. This event, held during Riyadh Music Week, is part of a collaboration with the Saudi Ministry of Culture’s Music Commission. The awards aim to celebrate Arab musical achievements, using data from the Billboard platform to determine the winners, offering a fresh perspective on regional music success. A New Stage for Arab Talent The awards ceremony forms part of the Saudi Musi…
A Symphony of Courage, Resilience, and Innovation from the Arab World In a landscape where the technology sector races against the clock, the story of OSN+’s dramatic transformation stands as a beacon of what is possible with sheer determination and ingenuity. Imagine reconstructing an entire video streaming platform in just 120 days. This isn’t a tale from Silicon Valley – it’s a narrative that unfolded in the heart of the Middle East. Rising to the Challenge "We undertake these tasks not because they are easy, but because they present a…
In a significant move for the Middle Eastern music industry, Saudi Arabia-based entertainment powerhouse MDLBEAST has announced the launch of MDLBEAST Publishing. This new division is dedicated to nurturing and promoting songwriters, producers, and artists from Saudi Arabia and the broader Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Global Reach and Strategic Partnerships MDLBEAST Publishing is not only set to make waves locally but also aims to extend its influence globally through a strategic partnership with Sentric. This collaboration will…
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with its diverse and vibrant musical heritage, has become a significant player in the global music industry. Several leading music distribution companies have established a strong presence in this region, contributing to its dynamic growth and cultural exchange. Here's a closer look at the top companies driving the music distribution landscape in the MENA market and their role in the emerging growth of digital music consumption. Warner Music Group (WMG): Warner Music Middle East Established: …
In a rapid turnaround, TikTok and Universal Music Publishing Group (UMG) have shifted from contention to cooperation regarding AI-generated content (AIGC). Just two months ago, UMG voiced serious concerns about TikTok's handling of AIGC. Now, TikTok is taking significant steps to enhance transparency around such content. TikTok Adopts Content Credentials to Label AI-Generated Content TikTok has begun using "Content Credentials," a cutting-edge technology from the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), to automa…
Apple Music is introducing a new ‘premium’ data analytics toolkit aimed at record labels and music distributors. This toolkit, known as the Apple Music Partner Program, offers a variety of tools to help partners track trends and global radio plays, utilizing Shazam technology. The platform aims to provide advanced analytics to its partners, enabling them to break new talent and uncover insights about their content. This new program builds upon Apple Music’s existing analytics platform, Apple Music For Artists, which launched in 2019 and allows…
TikTok is taking a bold stand against the United States government by filing a lawsuit to block a law that could ban the app if its parent company, ByteDance, does not sell TikTok within a year. The lawsuit argues that the bill infringes on the U.S. Constitution, particularly regarding free speech and individual liberty. In the lawsuit, TikTok highlights the unprecedented nature of the law, noting that it targets a single speech platform for a permanent, nationwide ban and restricts American access to an online community of over 1 billion peop…
Spotify has implemented a new strategy to nudge free users toward a paid subscription: restricting access to song lyrics. Users have expressed frustration on Reddit over this change, and Spotify has confirmed the move, albeit indirectly. Instead of a direct statement, the company mentioned to TechCrunch that its features can vary across devices, markets, and over time. This suggests the shift toward paywalling lyrics is more than just a temporary test. The shift towards limiting lyrics for free users started making waves last fall when the com…
Universal Music Group (UMG) and TikTok have struck a new licensing agreement, marking a fresh chapter of strategic collaboration. This multi-faceted partnership aims to provide substantial benefits to UMG’s global network of artists, songwriters, and labels, while also ensuring their music is accessible to TikTok’s vast user base. The agreement follows a three-month public dispute that led UMG and UMPG to pull their music from TikTok. With the new deal in place, UMG's recorded music and publishing catalogs will return to the platform, allo…
Anghami, the leading Middle East and North Africa-focused music streaming platform, reported an 18% increase in paying subscribers in Q1 2024 compared to the same period last year. This growth is a significant step forward for the company as it navigates through a challenging landscape. In its annual report for 2023, Anghami detailed its ongoing progress, revealing a narrowed operating loss. This improvement comes despite disruptions caused by the war in Gaza and the devaluation of the Egyptian pound, which affected revenues. Nevertheless, the…
In a groundbreaking move, global media innovation leader Qvest and the Saudi Research and Media Group (SRMG), the largest integrated media group in the Middle East and North Africa, have announced a strategic joint venture that aims to revolutionize media, production, and technological services in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The joint venture, headquartered in Riyadh, is set to play a pivotal role in reshaping the media landscape by focusing on media innovation, technology, change management services, cloud storage, data analysis, media suppl…
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