Beirut and Beyond

What Beirut and Beyond does

Beirut and Beyond is a Lebanese non-profit cultural organization founded in 2013 that operates the Beirut and Beyond International Music Festival (BBIMF), an annual showcase of independent and alternative music from the Arab region and beyond. Headquartered in Beirut and run by a team of approximately five full-time staff, the organization has expanded from a single festival into a year-round platform comprising an annual multi-venue festival (concerts at Metro Al Madina, Station Beirut, KED Karantina, and Grand Factory), artist residencies (Rap & Beyond with World Culture Museums Sweden; B&B x Prozess with Switzerland), the Musicians Support Program (commissioned recording at Tunefork Studios), a Professional Program for industry delegates (festival directors, curators, label owners, bookers, managers), monthly Music Talks, and editorial Publications on the regional scene. Its core 'technology' is human-curatorial: a platform layer that aggregates venues, artists, professionals, and institutional funders rather than a software product.

The organization serves three primary audiences — festival audiences and music enthusiasts in Lebanon, international and local music industry professionals, and emerging MENA-region artists (with particular focus on those affected by Lebanon's economic crisis and on women in rap/hip-hop/trap) — and monetizes through a hybrid non-profit model: low-priced ticket sales (single tickets ≈ 30,000 LBP, festival passes ≈ 90,000 LBP at 2017 levels; $10–$15 for ad hoc events like the 2025 South Goes North concert), grants and institutional funding from government embassies (Norwegian Embassy), cultural foundations (Swedish Institute, AFAC, Institut Français), and industry bodies (SACEM), plus partnership programs with international labels (balcoon) and touring partner festivals (Oslo World, Shubbak, Visa for Music, Ehdeniyat, Theatre de la Ville Paris, Art Link, Prozess). Distribution is primarily through direct venue partnerships domestically and through partner-festival circuits in Europe (Netherlands, France, Norway, Switzerland, UK), with ticketing handled via the third-party platform ihjoz.

Name

Beirut and Beyond

Legal name

Beirut and Beyond International Music Festival

Website

https://beirutandbeyond.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Beirut and Beyond is a Lebanese non-profit (founded 2013, 5 staff) that runs the Beirut and Beyond International Music Festival and year-round artist residencies, support programs, and professional networking platforms serving independent MENA musicians, regional audiences, and international music industry professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Music Festival / Cultural Events

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events without Facilities (711320), Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries (711)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Concerts & Music Festivals (THAJAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Cultural Festivals & Events Organizations (BPAGAHAG)

Keywords

• Live music festivals
• Cultural non-profit
• Music industry events
• Concert promotion
• MENA arts programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Beirut

HQ country

Lebanon

HQ region

Middle East

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue generated from ticket sales for festival concerts and events. Single tickets and festival passes are offered.
2. Grants and Institutional Funding: Non-profit funding from government embassies, cultural foundations, and arts organizations that support independent music scenes in the MENA region.
3. Partnership Programs: Collaborative programs with labels like balcoon for compilation releases and artist support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Beirut and Beyond is a non-profit cultural organization that produces the Beirut and Beyond International Music Festival (BBIMF), an annual live-music festival featuring concerts, artist showcases, and industry programming based in Beirut, Lebanon. Its core activities center on curating and staging live performances and supporting programs that connect regional and international artists with audiences and music-industry stakeholders.

Product overview

Beirut and Beyond operates as a music festival organization offering the BBIMF as its core annual festival product, complemented by artist support programs (Musicians Support Program, Rap & Beyond Residency, B&B x Prozess Residencies), professional development modules (Professional Program, Meet the Artists), discussion series (Music Talks), and content publications. The organization functions as a platform for showcasing and developing independent music talent from the MENA region through concerts, residencies, grants, and editorial content.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Musicians Support Program: Support program for Lebanon-based musicians launched in 2021
• Rap & Beyond
• Professional Program
• Meet the Artists

Products and services

• Beirut and Beyond International Music Festival (BBIMF) An annual live-music festival held in Beirut, Lebanon, featuring concerts, artist showcases, and industry programming for regional and international music audiences and professionals.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,400 attendees at opening concert (BBIMF 2017)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Rumman TripolimajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Partnership with Rumman Tripoli for the South Goes North concert event bringing Beirut music professionals to Tripoli. Rumman director Mohammad Tanir hosts events at Stereo Kawalis venue.
• balcoon (Bachar Mar-Khalifé)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 March 2024balcoon, Bachar Mar-Khalifé's Paris-based label, partnered on the 10 Years Compilation album featuring 10 Lebanon-based artists. Artists were commissioned to record tracks at Tunefork Studios with Bachar's support.
• World Culture Museums (Sweden)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 April 2023Partnered with World Culture Museums for the Rap & Beyond residency program to promote and support women's voices in Rap, Hip Hop, and Trap scenes in the MENA region. Part of the Mind the Gap programme.
• Oslo World Music FestivalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 September 2020Oslo World is BBIMF's founding partner and has launched solidarity concert series to support Beirut music scene. They collaborated on BBIMF European tours and have been instrumental in the festival's establishment and international positioning.
• Theatre de la Ville ParismajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnered for BBIMF European tour and hosted solidarity concerts in Paris to raise funds for Beirut music scene. Major venue partner for French events.
• Institut FrançaismajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench cultural institute partner supporting BBIMF programs and activities in Lebanon.
• Art Link (Switzerland)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSwiss partner for BBIMF European tour, facilitating artist performances across Switzerland.
• Shubbak Festival (UK)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUK partner festival hosting BBIMF artists during European tour performances.
• Visa for Music (Morocco)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBBIMF board member Brahim el Mazned is artistic director of Visa for Music, creating strong collaborative ties with Moroccan music industry.
• Prozess (Switzerland)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational residency program partnership with Swiss organization Prozess. Multiple residency exchanges have taken place between Lebanon and Switzerland.
• KED BeirutmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKED venue in Karantina is a key concert location for BBIMF events and release concerts.
• Station BeirutmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStation Beirut venue has been a key partner for concerts and events since BBIMF 2016.
• Metro Al MadinamajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMetro Al Madina is a central venue for BBIMF festival concerts, described as a passage point and rite of passage for artists.
• Sundance InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJumana Al-Yasiri from Sundance Institute Theatre Program serves on BBIMF Board of Trustees.
• SACEM FranceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSACEM supported the Musicians Support Program webinar on music copyrights and royalties.
• Ehdeniyat International FestivalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBBIMF board member Rima Frangieh is founder of Ehdeniyat Festival, creating collaborative ties between festivals.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Le Guess Who? Festival: Utrecht-based festival curating adventurous and global music with strong artist-residency programming; mirrors BBIMF's curator-driven, multi-venue showcase model and tour-circuit presence in the Netherlands.
• Shubbak Festival: London's biennial festival of contemporary Arab and North African culture; one of BBIMF's documented UK tour partners and operates the exact same bridge between MENA independent artists and European audiences.
• Unsound Festival: Poland-based festival focused on adventurous, experimental and electronic music with accompanying conference and residency components; comparable to BBIMF in its fusion of concerts, talks, and artist development.
• Oslo World Music Festival: Norway's flagship world-music festival and BBIMF's documented founding partner; operates a similar multi-venue, professionally programmed model showcasing artists from the Global South, making it the closest organizational and philosophical peer.
• Visa for Music: Morocco-based professional and showcase festival for MENA and African music; BBIMF board member Brahim El Mazned is its founder, and the two organizations run joint showcases for emerging regional artists.
• Timitar Festival: Major Moroccan world-music festival directed by BBIMF board member Brahim El Mazned; functions as a parallel MENA showcase platform with comparable artist-development and professional-programming infrastructure.
• MUTEK: Montreal-headquartered festival and network for digital arts and electronic music with editions across continents; comparable scale of programming mix (concerts + talks + residencies) and similar tour-network ambitions.

Others

• WOMEX: Global music expo and conference for world music professionals; not a competing festival but the same ecosystem of embassies, labels, and festivals that BBIMF's Professional Program plugs into.

Regional players

• Ehdeniyat International Festival: Lebanese international music festival founded by BBIMF board member Rima Frangieh; serves as a sibling domestic peer, competing for overlapping Lebanese audiences and embassy funding in the same country.

Broad incumbents

• Eurosonic Noorderslag: Netherlands-based pan-European showcase festival and conference that aggregates industry professionals for artist discovery; overlaps with BBIMF's Professional Program in connecting emerging talent with international bookers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/beirut-and-beyond

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Beirut and Beyond