Ghassan Chartouni believes MENA music industry has the potential to break into global Top 10

Ghassan Chartouni, CEO and founder of Lebanon-based Glava Holding, believes that MENA’s music industry has the potential to break into the top 10 globally in the coming years. However, for this to happen, he emphasises the need for a substantial push towards subscription-based streaming.

Chartouni, who also heads Music Is My Life, the record label Watary, and endorsement agency Deepiu, has spoken to Music Business Worldwide about the evolving landscape of the MENA music industry and its future potential.

“We have to invest more in convincing people to change to a streaming subscription model,” says Chartouni. Despite the MENA region having over 500 million people and streaming accounting for 98.4% of the market, only four million people are paid subscribers—just 0.8% of the population, compared to 50% in the United States.

Despite the progress in digital music consumption, Chartouni highlights several areas where the MENA music market still lags behind, such as the lack of labels, professional staff, and publishing rights infrastructure. “For a population of 500 million, we have maybe 20 labels, while in the European Union, for the same population number, there are 7,600 labels,” he points out.

Today, Glava boasts impressive numbers, with 46.6 billion YouTube views and over 70 million subscribers. Among its roster of talent are Syrian artist Al Shami, who currently holds the No.1 spot on the Billboard Arabia chart, and other successful acts like Nassif Zeytoun and Rahma Riad.

Reflecting on his holistic approach to artist development, Chartouni explains: “When you develop talent, you have to develop their personal life first and then their career. If you don’t do that, the artist will be lost. The artist is the star, not his music, and a lot of people forget that.”

Looking ahead, Chartouni is optimistic about the region’s potential for international growth. “Arabic music will [go global] because soon we have a population and diaspora of 600 million, and with streaming, that will make a difference,” he says.

Despite challenges, such as low subscription rates, piracy and a nascent infrastructure, Chartouni remains committed to his mission of elevating Arabic music on the global stage. "One day, my music will be global. I would like to spread Arabic music to the whole globe and create more inspiring stories and stars."

To read the full interview with Ghassan Chartouni you can check it out here.

[Via: MBW]