Amr Diab to Nancy Ajram: Meet the Middle East’s biggest Arab music stars

If you command a fan following like that of Egyptian superstar Amr Diab, it can be said without a doubt that you would land on the Forbes Middle East Biggest Arab Music Stars list. The same can be said about Lebanese songstress Nancy Ajram who rules social media in the Arab world. Look at their star power last year, combined with the reach on social media and streaming music platforms such as on Anghami, Deezer, and Spotify, here’s a look at the most-streamed active singers and artists on both platforms between January 1 and December 31, 2020, as well as numbers of YouTube views, subscribers, and social media followers.

Amr Diab: The industry veteran was last year’s most-streamed Arab singer in MENA on Anghami, Deezer, and Spotify. Starting from 1983, when he first burst on to the scene with the album ‘Ya Tareeq’ at aged 22, Diab has gone on to release 36 albums and set a Guinness World Record as well in 2016 for the most World Music Awards wins for Best Selling Middle Eastern Artist. His ‘Sahran’ album was also the most-streamed new album released in 2020 on Anghami, with more than 68 million streams last year. He has over 4.9 million YouTube subscribers, with his videos viewed nearly 1.4 billion times as of March 25, 2021. Diab had more than 43 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram in 2020.

Nancy Ajram: The ageless Lebanese singer, who calls Dubai a second home, emerged as the most followed singer, boasting more than 71 million followers on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at the end of 2020. With an additional 5.5 million subscribers on YouTube, Ajram has come a long way since she burst on to the music scene in 1995, aged 12. In 2020, Ajram was the 11th most-streamed Arab singer on Anghami. According to Forbes, her videos viewed more than 2.1 billion times as of March 19, 2021.

Saad Lamjarred: The Moroccan singer Saad Lamjarred holds the title as the most followed Arab artist on YouTube, with over 12.4 million subscribers to his channel. Finding fame through the talent show ‘Superstar’ in 2007, he moved from strength to strength with his most famous song being ‘LM3ALLEM’. According to Forbes, in 2020, Lamjarred was among the top 50 most-streamed Arab singers on Anghami and the 50 most-streamed artists in MENA on Deezer. His song, ‘Adda El Kalam’, was the fourth most-streamed Arabic song on Anghami last year. His videos viewed more than 3.1 billion times as of March 31, 2021. He had 15.5 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as of the end of 2020.

Hussain Al Jassmi: As one of two Emiratis on the list (the other being Ahlam Alshamsi), Al Jassmi is the 7th most-streamed Arab singer on music platform Anghami. Since dropping his first album ‘Gased’ in 2002, he has gone on to record another 15 albums, perform on international stages and emerge as a brand ambassador for Expo 2020. According to Forbes, he has over 6.9 million subscribers on YouTube, with his videos viewed more than 2.6 billion times as of March 25, 2021. He had more than 21.1 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as of the end of 2020.

Mohamed Assaf: A former Palestinian refugee who shot to fame after winning ‘Arab Idol’ in 2013, Assaf has 155,000 subscribers on YouTube, with his videos viewed more than 23 million times as of March 19, 2021. He had over 20 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as of the end of 2020.

Elissa: As the third most-streamed Arab singer in MENA on Deezer, the Lebanese singer has been a firm favourite with fans since she first appeared on the music competition ‘Studio Alfan’ in 1992. According to Forbes, in 2020, Elissa was the third most-streamed Arab singer in MENA on Deezer, and her album ‘Sahbit Raey’ was the most-streamed album in MENA on the platform. She has over 3.3 million subscribers on YouTube, with her videos viewed more than 955 million times as of March 25, 2021. Elissa had over 56 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as of the end of 2020, making her the second most followed Arab singer on social media.

Tamer Hosny: The Egyptian actor-singer is the fourth most-streamed Arab artist in MENA on Anghami and Deezer. From his 2002 album ‘Free Mix 3’ there has been no stopping him. In 2021 he released a new album, ‘Khaleek Folazy’ and plans to release an app. He has over 6.6 million subscribers on YouTube says Forbes, with his videos viewed more than 2.1 billion times as of March 19, 2020. He had more than 40 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as of the end of 2020.

Mohamed Hamaki: Raking in a popularity that is similar to Amr Diab, it is only fair to see Hamaki emerge as the second most-streamed Arab singer on Anghami. The Egyptian superstar has been a firm favourite in the UAE ever since he released his first song in 1998. In 2020, Hamaki became the sixth most streamed artist in MENA on Deezer. He has 2.3 million subscribers on YouTube, with his videos viewed more than 661 million times as of March 19, 2021. He had over 28.9 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram by the end of 2020.

Wegz: This Egyptian powerhouse has emerged as the second most-streamed Arab artist in MENA on Deezer and we can understand why. Rapper Ahmed Ali “Wegz” may have only emerged on to the scene in 2017 but his 2019 song ‘Bazeet’ made him a household name. In 2020, Wegz was also the eighth most-streamed Arab singer on Anghami. He has nearly 1.5 million subscribers on YouTube, with his videos viewed more than 202 million times as of March 25, 2021.

Hassan Shakosh: Another Egyptian to land on the list, Shakosh is the third most-streamed Arab singer on Anghami. If his name was familiar to sporting enthusiasts then it probably was because he played footie for the Egyptian club, Ismaily SC. His song ‘Bent Elgeran’ was the most-streamed Arabic song on Anghami and the second most-streamed song in MENA on Deezer last year. His videos had been viewed on YouTube nearly 1.5 billion times as of March 19, 2021.

Assala Nasri: The Syrian child prodigy has been crooning since she was four years old. Nasri started her musical career in 1991 with her debut album ‘Law Ta’rafou’ and she has since released at least 22 albums. According to Forbes, in 2020, Nasri released her ‘La Testaslem’ album, which became the most-streamed album in Saudi Arabia and the third most-streamed album in MENA on Deezer last year. Overall she was also the platform’s fifth most-streamed Arab singer in MENA in 2020. Nasri has over four million subscribers on YouTube, with her videos viewed more than 1.5 billion times as of March 25, 2021. She had over 30.6 million followers across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram as of the end of 2020.