News DeskDubai, UAE – The UAE’s music industry marked a milestone on Thursday with the official launch of Music Nation Copyrights Management, a new organization designed to modernize the country’s music-licensing system and ensure artists and rights holders are paid swiftly and transparently.
Rasha Khalifa Al Mubarak, Founder and Chairwoman of Music Nation, Music Nation aims to build the UAE’s first comprehensive platform for administering public performance and mechanical rights. The company has formed strategic partnerships with US-based Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) and SoundExchange, two of the world’s leading music rights organizations, to provide a unified licensing, collection and royalty distribution framework.
“Today marks the start of a new era for artists in the UAE,” Al Mubarak said. “With Music Nation’s technology and leadership team, we’re delivering a simple, transparent and modern licensing solution that easily licenses businesses and quickly pays creators.”
Music Nation’s leadership team includes Amer M. Samhoun as Chief Executive Officer, James K. Petrie as Chief Operating Officer, and Ali Dee as Chief Creative Officer. The company will operate from offices in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Samhoun said the organization’s goal is to make music licensing easier for businesses while ensuring artists receive fair compensation. “With our ongoing education initiatives, artist-first mentality, and best-in-class partnerships and data, Music Nation stands ready to deliver on day one,” he said.
Through integration with BMI’s and SoundExchange’s global databases, the company said it will achieve advanced song-matching accuracy, reducing unmatched royalties and speeding up payouts to rights holders.
BMI President and Chief Executive Michael O’Neill said the partnership would strengthen the global mission to ensure creators are fairly compensated wherever their music is played.
“Music Nation’s launch represents a major step forward in expanding that mission globally and empowering creators across the region,” he said.
Michael Huppe, President and Chief executive of SoundExchange, said the partnership reflects a shared commitment to “build a fair and efficient rights management system for recording artists and rights holders in the UAE.”
Music Nation will also focus on educating local businesses and artists about licensing and royalties, providing multilingual support and a centralized system for broadcasters, venues and event organizers to obtain licenses.
The launch marks the UAE’s first unified platform for music licensing, reporting and distribution — a move industry observers say could help pave the way for a more transparent and sustainable creative economy across the region.
