Everybody is trying to be the next Spotify. Not everybody does it all that well. An outfit that seems to have its act together is Anghami, a streaming service from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Odds are, however, that you haven’t even heard of them.

Or perhaps you have. The streaming service claims some 70 million users around the world, even if its focus is quite neatly localised. See, Anghami was founded in 2012 with users in the Middle East and North Africa in mind. It was also created as an alternative to music piracy in those regions. That seems to have paid off, both in terms of users and financially.

Accessing Anghami

The Spotify competitor offers its users music from Arabic music labels, its major market differentiator. But there are also artists from Universal, Sony, and Warner music groups on the service. Its audience doesn’t have to travel far to get everything it needs. And, like Spotify, there is a range of different tiers when it comes to listening.

Anghami has a wholly free option, which offers ad-supported music with no other features. Then there’s Anghami Plus, the equivalent of Spotify Premium. This service costs roughly R50 a month and offers offline downloads, no ads, lyric support, and higher quality audio (320Kbps). Apple Carplay and Android Auto are enabled with a Plus subscription as well.

There’s also a Family plan (R120/m) that has all the same benefits. For the extra money, subscribers may add up to six individual users to a single account. Which, if you’re looking for a service with a focus on Arabic music, doesn’t sound like a bad deal by any means.

The service was recently listed on the Nasdaq, with the aid of a SPAC company called Vistas Media. The merger was something we’ve seen recently elsewhere — with Donald Trump, of all people. Anghami’s stock shot skyward immediately after listing, climbing by more than 80% of its starting value.