Billboard Arabia has launched a new initiative called Sounds of the Lands to help showcase music from across the region.
A collection of samples, the recordings started as topographic data from various regions around the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Experts then transformed this data into carvings on vinyl, allowing sounds to be derived from the regions unique landscapes.
Created as a tribute to the Arab world, Billboard Arabia is offering the samples from Sounds of the Lands to all artists and producers for use in music creation at soundsoftheland.com and on Soundcloud at soundcloud.com/billboardarabia. Producers and artists are invited to send in one-minute tracks inspired by the Sounds of the Land, and from the submissions Billboard Arabia, in partnership with gamma, will curate a list of 10 of the best tracks. These will be released one-by-one throughout the year.
Producers can submit their samples to hibillbaord@billboardarabia.com to have their sample included in the official sample pack of The Sounds of the Land.
The websites feature 20 different samples that showcase the beauty and diversity of the Arab world, from the vast green landscapes and valleys to the sand dunes, mountains and much more. This includes Sounds of Al Ula (Saudi Arabia), Sounds of Tafilah (Jordan), Sounds of Tinghir (Morocco), Sounds of Kadisha Valley (Lebanon) and Sounds of Luxor (Egypt).
Billboard Arabia was launched in June as a partnership between Billboard and media giant SRMG. The new branch is based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and it covers music from the MENA region through new charts, video and written coverage.
Billboard Arabia will also introduce other Billboard franchises to the MENA market, the fastest-growing region according to IFPI, including a Billboard Arabia Music Awards and Arabic Music Week, among others.
