About

Jafra Productions is a pioneering independent label and artist incubator based in Ramallah, Palestine, with its roots dating back to 2010. Jafra Productions has been playing a crucial role in shaping and modernizing the future of the Palestinian music industry and its infrastructures to support artists and professionals alike to thrive on global stages.

Our mission, vision, and values all coalesce into one powerful purpose: to champion extraordinary musical talent, protect musicians’ rights, and empower innovation. We firmly embrace music as a unifying force, transcending borders and cultures, as we amplify the rich voices and stories of Palestine to the world.

Our unwavering commitment to excellence drives us to pursue pioneering opportunities to launch Palestinian music onto the global stage.

Values

At Jafra Productions, our core values form the very foundation of our work:

Respect: We value every artist and their team, recognizing and honoring their unique creative journeys.

Expertise: We rely on the collective expertise of our team to deliver top-notch services to artists, ensuring their success and sustainable growth.

Fairness: We are committed to providing equal access to opportunities and empowering artists to make their own choices while safeguarding their rights and promoting fairness in all aspects.

Transparency: Transparency is paramount in all our partnerships. We openly share information about our work and maintain clarity and honest agreements with our artists and partners, enabling well-informed decisions.

Our Work

Through our programs and initiatives, and in our effort to contribute to the development and sustainability of the regional music industry and its infrastructure, Jafra Productions has established and supported artists and has promoted numerous collaborations, and projects worldwide.

PROGRAMS

NEST: A unique music incubator boosting emerging artists’ talents and careers. Through NEST, we have supported over 350 aspiring artists through skills training, mentorship, and access to professional studios and equipment since 2010. Happening annually, NEST is a music incubator program in Palestine with a disruptive concept of empowering artist education tools, and sharing new ways of working and approaches to music composition in today’s world.

TAMI: “Technology and Music Innovation”: An academic program empowering new entrepreneurs with cutting-edge knowledge and skills supported by industry experts in partnership with the renowned Dar Al Kalima University.

Gazal: A program that envisions the build-up of a social-digital platform bridging music creators with their audiences, and fostering a harmonious community to shape their growth. This stems from the services that are expected to be exchanged within Gazal, such as digital distribution, booking, and management. With the potential of thousands of artists and music consumers in Palestine and in all of its tight-knit diaspora communities to be connected through Gazal, we aim to enable meaningful engagement and unblock a true fan-centric approach to the creators’ careers.

Board of Directors

In 2022, we were honored to announce the formation of Jafra’s board of directors, made up of 13 members. Our board includes prominent artists, pioneers and directors of leading institutions in Palestine, namely Suleiman Mansour, Bassem Khoury, Manal Zureik, Aref Al-Husseini, Youssef Habash, Yaqoub Hammouda, Mahmoud Awad, Imad Khoury, Wael Al-Saadi, Ruba Al-Mimi, Noura Trish, Rami Al-Sabaa, Rola Shannar.

Main Partnerships

At Jafra Productions, we believe in the transformative power of collaboration to not only elevate the music industry in Palestine but also to create a harmonious bridge between our culture and abroad, amplifying the vibrant voices and melodies of Palestinian artists worldwide.

Strategic Partner

Drosos

Partnering with DROSOS in 2021 has been a game-changer for the company. Their unique approach gives us the confidence and security we need to tackle socio-economic challenges in the Palestinian music landscape. Together with DROSOS, we’re creating more opportunities for emerging talent through skillset-building programs. By Q4 2023, we’ve achieved seven major business deals, over 45 distribution and publishing contracts, and four all-in-one 360-degree deals for artists in our roster. Working with DROSOS has not just boosted our mission locally, but also fueled our international growth.

Business Development Partners

The Agence Française de Développement (AFD) — Expertise France

We’re incredibly excited about our collaboration with the French Development Agency, an important commitment aiming to elevate the Palestinian music industry and its infrastructure. This alliance marks the first-ever agreement the agency has signed in the realm of music globally. Working alongside Expertise France and SACEM, we aim to address key areas: honing the legal framework for music professionals in Palestine, fostering entrepreneurship and industry skills, and building robust networks and digital platforms. This partnership is a significant stride forward, both for Jafra Productions and the larger music ecosystem in Palestine.

Welfare – Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD)

We’re thrilled to collaborate with the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD), a partnership facilitated and managed by the Taawon Foundation. This alliance has been instrumental in laying the groundwork for our TAMI program. Together, we’re not only reinforcing the infrastructure of musical education in Palestine but also setting new benchmarks for what can be achieved through concerted, strategic efforts. This collaboration has enriched our capacity to deliver high-impact initiatives and has elevated the scope of our work to new levels.

Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (AFAC)

Jafra and AFAC have a fruitful history of collaboration. It all kicked off in 2014 with the OBOR project, a milestone that saw the production of five groundbreaking music albums. This collaboration didn’t just end there; it evolved and culminated in the ACE project in 2018 in Beirut, partnering with key institutions from across the Arab world, this became one of the most pivotal experiences for Jafra, driving significant benefits and laying the groundwork for future collaborations.

Financial partner

PriceWaterHouseCoopers (PwC)

Collaborating with PWC has been a pivotal move for Jafra Productions. They’ve played a key role in refining our financial structures, from taxation to legal policies. Their expertise didn’t just upgrade our operations, but it extended to empowering Palestinian creators and professionals with financial management skills. This not only boosts our mission but also puts us on a path toward financial sustainability.

Music industry partners

We eagerly seek new industry partnerships with both local and international organizations to boost innovation and collaborative ventures.

Believe (Arabia)

Believe is one of the major players in label and artist services for the independent music sector worldwide. As an add-on, Believe also expanded its business operations to digital distribution services by acquiring TuneCore in 2015. This successful acquisition made them a powerful ally to support music labels like Jafra Productions in efficiently distributing the music of their artists rooted within the MENA/Levant region. Jafra’s partnership with Believe Arabia has enabled the company to provide digital distribution, exposing Palestinian music to over 150 global streaming platforms and markets since 2020.

LyricFind

LyricFind is the world’s leader in licensed lyric solutions provided to partners like Jafra Productions – allowing lyric display, lyric search, and most importantly song translations in platforms like YouTube/Google, TikTok, Deezer, or Anghami. LyricFind’s technology allows artists and rights holders, labels (such as Jafra Productions), and digital distributors to create branded lyric videos to complement their promotion strategies. Enabling Arabic singing artists to display their lyrics in all languages in the world across the globe, and supporting Jafra’s roster, opens a wider range of opportunities for larger-scale promotion opportunities.

Jafra’s Team