For the uninitiated, MENAT is the combined region of the Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey, and while many look to Europe as examples of electronic music culture, this banded area of the world is currently experiencing an exciting growth period. In recent years there has been a bloom in terms of large-scale events based in the region such as Aegis Festival and Fantome de Nuit x A Tribe Called Tribe event in Beirut, MOGA Festival in Essaouira, XP Music Futures and MDL Beast in Saudi Arabia, Fabrika in Tunisia, the Bahraini Soundscapes as well as a slew of gatherings in Egypt, Turkey, and the UAE.
There is an unimaginable amount of international artists that populate these events, but it is the local artists and their smaller scale events that have nurtured and grown their domestic presence to the full and varied scenes that they are truly becoming. In recognition of this exciting period, a like-minded group of creatives have banded together to create a platform that aims to shine a light on these talented individuals and offer them a link to the rest of the world and their respective communities.
Mahara, a booking agency, management and events production based in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain looks to represent the wealth of talent from the MENAT. The experienced team begins with Tracy Bakala, who is better placed than most to offer the expertise that such a project requires, being the driving force behind French Yoyaku and agency Interwave. Co-founder is Khalid Daylami, his love of music goes back to the early 00’s, becoming resident of the reputable Unleash, and now his own co-run Noctuary series with friends. Also in the team are Victor Boutin who plays a leading role as a booker in Interwave, Maged Abdelmessih who runs Desimana in Egypt along with Fady Nageeb, Joana Abou Jaude who is behind Fantome De Nuit in Beirut, Berk Ozmen creator of ticketing platform Bugece in Turkey, Calypso Ldlc in logistics and Rosa Scipion as their community manager.
As well as the domestic artists from MENAT that this agency is geared towards, Mahara will also be catering for a select group of international artists as a sub agency for their respective agencies and the list is already impressive. With a distinct link to the region being a heartfelt thread that runs deeply through this platform, the collaborations with brands such as Aegis Festival, Desimana, VBX, Why? Not Club, Yoyaku, SlapFunk, Half Baked, Noctuary, After Caposile, Honeycomb Hi-Fi, Interwave, Fantome de Nuit, and this roster is set to grow in the near future.
Worldwide
Baris K | CHIATI | Daox | Daylomar | Ece Özel | Hameed | Maei | Majid Nesta | Ohm Hourani | Omar Fayyad | RG | Salar Ansari | Tamer
MENAT
AIDA | Aline Umber (Live) | Bassam | Cabanne | Dana Ruh (DJ + Live) | Desirée Falessi Francesca Lombardo | Hostom Live | Jonny Rock | Magda | Lamache | Maher Daniel Miroloja | Monile | O.BEE | Satoshi Tomiie (DJ + Live) | Tomas Station | Varhat | Zeina
More info on Mahara
Instagram | Website
