Anghami unveils Dubai concert series Beat the Heat
Music streaming giant Anghami has announced details of new UAE indoor concert series Beat the Heat following its recent acquisition of Spotlight Events.
The seven-concert festival, organised by Dubai-headquartered Spotlight in collaboration with the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing – Dubai, launches this Saturday (16 July) with an alternative rap night headlined by Cairokee and Afroto. Tickets are priced 100-200 AED (€27-55).
Beat the Heat will continue each Saturday up to 27 August and will focus on a different musical genre each week. The series forms part of this year’s Dubai Summer Surprises, with all shows held at the Dubai World Trade Center’s 7,210-cap Sheikh Rashid Hall.
“Beat the Heat is about enriching music fans’ summer with live performances from top Arab talent in a unqiue setup”
“Beat the Heat is about enriching music fans’ summer with live performances from top Arab talent in a unique setup,” Anghami co-founder and CEO Eddy Maroun tells Arab News. “It’s also a celebration of the region’s vibrant music culture and a stage for top trending artists on Anghami to go on stage, perform and interact with their audiences offline.
“Anghami’s main purpose is to empower young Arab talent to create and connect with the world. Beat the Heat does just that by giving Arab voices and creators a platform to make some noise.”
Lebanon-based Anghami is the largest music streaming service in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and last year announced plans to open music venues in Dubai, Riyadh and several other Middle Eastern cities, as well as in the UK and North America.
It has installed Spotlight as its concerts arm to help unlock synergies and opportunities between the physical and digital worlds.
“We’re one step closer to becoming a fully integrated entertainment platform”
“By launching Beat the Heat in partnership with Dubai Tourism, our first live concert series since acquiring Spotlight Events, we’re one step closer to becoming a fully integrated entertainment platform and building our own unique category that other platforms can hardly replicate,” adds Maroun.
“We’re also strengthening our visibility and keeping Anghami top of mind by reaching audiences offline, complementing our digital experiences.”
Launched in 2005, Spotlight has six affiliate offices in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco.
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Anghami acquires concerts firm Spotlight Events
Anghami, the largest music streaming service in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), has acquired Dubai-based event management company Spotlight Events.
Aiming to unlock synergies and opportunities between the physical and digital worlds, the partnership will see Spotlight Events become Lebanon-based Anghami’s concerts arm, including for offline activities and activations.
Anghami’s technology will provide access to exclusive concerts through its live video streaming capabilities, as well as via creating immersive experiences through AR and VR. Fans will be offered exclusive access to private concerts, VIP lounges, meet and greets and backstage access, in addition to attending concerts either offline or streamed through their devices. Traditional and virtual concerts will be accessible either through tickets or sponsored by brands.
“Our vision is to expand from music streaming to a fully integrated entertainment platform”
“Our vision is to expand from music streaming to a fully integrated entertainment platform that meets our goal of building our own unique category that no other provider can compete with,” says Eddy Maroun, Anghami co-founder and CEO.
“This partnership will allow us to deliver unique experiences to our users while giving artists a stage to perform and reach their fans physically and virtually. Spotlight and Anghami Lab are among a number of initiatives we plan to develop as new business extensions to accelerate our growth and improve our margins while widening the gap with our competitors.”
Launched in 2005, Spotlight is headquartered in Dubai and has six affiliate offices in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco.
“Maher [Khawkhaji, Spotlight founder/CEO] has built a great business on solid economics and has proven that live concerts and events are a scalable and profitable business,” adds Maroun.
“Our offline expertise, complemented by Anghami’s reach, data and technical capabilities, is the perfect recipe for success”
Spotlight Events has recently confirmed its programme of upcoming concerts and events in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Paris, Cairo and Riyadh, including seven-concert festival Beat the Heat, organised in collaboration with the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing – Dubai (DTCM).
Six concerts are planned for the rest of the year in Abu Dhabi and will be announced at a later date. The schedule also includes a live concert by Wael Kfoury in Paris. Spotlight will also be executing all of Anghami’s events, including Amr Diab Live.
“Anghami is the largest music platform in the MENA region with an incredible number of users and a unique network of partnerships that, once connected to Spotlight, will open doors to amazing opportunities,” says Khawkhaji. “Our offline expertise, complemented by Anghami’s reach, data and technical capabilities, is the perfect recipe for success.
“We look forward to being part of this dynamic team and unleashing the incredible potential to bring the best to music fans, artists and brands and take entertainment to the next level.”
The announcement follows Anghami’s recent IPO on Nasdaq as the first Arab tech company to list on the US stock market.
Last year, the company announced plans to open music venues in Dubai, Riyadh and several other Middle Eastern cities, as well as in the UK and North America.
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Anghami to open venues in Middle East, UK, US
Anghami, the largest music streaming service in the Middle East and north Africa (Mena), has announced plans to open music venues in Dubai, Riyadh and several other Middle Eastern cities, as well as in the UK and North America.
Lebanon-based Anghami, which is preparing for a flotation on New York’s Nasdaq market, has partnered with hospitality company Addmind to launch Anghami Lab, an “innovative entertainment venue” concept which will debut in Dubai in early 2022. According to the companies, Anghami Lab will bridge the worlds of live and digital music, its live stage being joined by a studio where performers can create “music inspired by both Arabic and international cultures” which will then be made available to listen back exclusively on Anghami.
In addition, new features will be added to the Anghami app “complementing both experiences”, say the new partners.
“This is a great opportunity to further reinforce the value we provide digitally to be converged offline in a unique user-to-guest experience”
Eddy Maroun, co-founder and CEO of Anghami, says: “We are excited to partner with Addmind to create this unique, transformational experience for our users. Addmind is a leading expert in conceptualising and operating hospitality spaces, and this is a great opportunity to further reinforce the value we provide digitally to be converged offline in a unique user-to-guest experience.”
Following the opening of the Dubai venue, further Anghami Labs are planned for Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, then Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), Cairo (Egypt), Beirut (Lebanon), London, New York and Los Angeles.
“Anghami is more than just a streaming platform,” comments Tony Habre, CEO of Addmind. “They have elevated the value of the music industry in the Middle East as a whole. Anghami Lab is an amazing and unique concept that embodies our rich Arab culture with an international twist, which we are thrilled to bring to fruition and scale.”
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International music biz rallies support for Beirut
The international music industry is rallying support to help those affected by last month’s devastating explosion in Beirut with a number of livestream fundraising events.
Electronic Labor Day (ELD) and Beatport ReConnect are joining forces to broadcast 12 hours of live electronic music this Sunday (13 September), with the aim of raising $500,000 to help rebuild the Lebanese capital.
“Beirut is hurting. The events of August 4th have devastated a difficult situation. No ounce of solidarity was missing in the minutes and hours following the tragedy… Let’s put that noble sentiment to good use,” reads a statement from the organisers.
Over 100 international DJs have been enlisted for the cause, including Blond:ish, Danny Howard and Pete Tong.
The For Beirut fundraiser will be streamed on the ELD website from 1:58 pm local time with a minute of silence to mark the time of the blast and 40 days of mourning.
“No ounce of solidarity was missing in the hours following the tragedy. Let’s put that noble sentiment to good use”
Funds will be split between three causes including Beirut Emergency Fund, Impact Lebanon and Bebw’shebbek.
For Beirut follows a fundraiser which took place earlier this week (8 September), organised by Arabic streaming platform Anghami, and Sony Music Entertainment Middle East.
The Sound of Beirut featured two hours’ worth of virtual performances from Arabic and international artists including Craig David, The Chainsmokers and Maya Diab, which were streamed on Anghami.
The donations, which are yet to be announced, will go to Global Aid for Lebanon.
For Beirut will be the second edition of ELD; the first taking place earlier this year to support the nightlife non-managerial personnel who have been deeply impacted by the repercussions of Covid-19.
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