2016 Winners & Shortlists

Creative Execution

The night of the Launch concert, 3 live experiences were interlinked using the #ibnelleil At the peak of the concert, the band was joined by a live-stream of Beirut. The visuals behind them are interrupted and the audience, both at the Barbican and those watching the live stream online or on TV saw the footage of a party at Behind the Green Door. This was the first time the Arab culture of the night was on mainstream traditional media live and without censorship. A hashtag interlinking the 3 live experiences starting in London and spreading across Arab and non-Arab regions: the concert, the party, the audience watching live on TV/ Online, through a social-media conversation #ibnelleil

• Ranked #1 album on iTunes MENA in the week of the release (beating Adele’s Album release) • #1 Album at Virgin Megastores MENA in the week of the release • First Arab Pop band to be ranked #13 on US Billboard Charts • Over 1Million experienced, live, the Barbican Launch Concert in the world, • an audience 66x larger than their biggest concert ever • More than 9 Million estimated online impressions

We wanted to create an album launch that would for the first time unite the generation of Mashrou’ Leila under their music, whether they are fans or not, and so giving the band a larger cultural role beyond the fan base of the group. Our objectives were to reach an audience wider than their biggest previous concert performances and to place the album at the top of social conversations. Knowing that the band cannot perform in most Arab countries, they chose the Barbican to host their launch concert. This became an opportunity to turn it into their largest concert that any independent Arab group has ever performed, reaching over 1 Million people who watched the concert live on TV, on webstreaming, and live at the Barbican.