US company Reservoir and PopArabia buy Egyptian label 100Copies

The deal follows Reservoir founder and CEO Golnar Khosrowshahi’s announcement in February that the company would invest more than $200m in mergers and acquisitions in its first year as a public company. The business listed on the NASDAQ in July 2021.

Reservoir and PopArabia have also formed a joint venture with the label to sign and develop artists from Egypt. Separately, the two companies have signed Egyptian rapper and singer Mohamed Ramadan in a global publishing deal, which includes songs from his current catalogue and future releases.

Ramadan has amassed more than 4.65 billion views for songs on YouTube, including hits like ‘Ya Habibi’ featuring French-Congolese artist Gims. Ramadan’s fanbase boasts over one million monthly listeners on Spotify and more than 20 million Instagram followers.

“I’m very happy to be entering this new deal with Reservoir and PopArabia,” Ramadan said. “I look forward to reaching the next levels together.”

Reservoir and PopArabia first entered a joint venture agreement to sign and develop Arabic talent in 2020. Their other recent signings include Lebanese star Zeid Hamdan, Moroccan superstar 7liwa and artist collective ARXP Cartel.

Reservoir said that 100Copies was an early champion of Egypt-rooted genre mahraganat which emerged in 2011. It fuses Arabic rap with electronic music and traditional Egyptian elements. Founded by producer Mahmoud Refaat in 2006, 100Copies made early investments in mahraganat to promote the genre after being “inspired by young musicians”.

Established in 2011 by former Canadian hip hop artist and music executive Spek alongside twofour54 Abu Dhabi, PopArabia operates in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and sub-publishes global music catalogues across MENA markets.

Khosrowshahi said: “MENA was the world’s fastest-growing region in 2021, with revenue growth of 35%, according to the IFPI’s recent report.

“We are proud to have created a robust presence in the market ahead of that growth through our work with PopArabia. We look forward to further solidifying Reservoir as an influential player in these markets and simultaneously fulfilling our commitment to facilitate the movement and cultural impact of Eastern talent in the West.”