Seven years ago, Sami El-Quqa launched MusicGrid as a music licensing platform for the MENA and GCC region. The idea was focused. Build a regional music library that local brands and agencies could actually use. The company collected more than forty thousand tracks from international musicians and composers. It was efficient, curated, and easy to scale.
But at the bottom of the website, there was a small note offering custom music on request.
That single line changed everything.
Most of the early clients reached out asking for original music. Some needed campaign soundtracks. Others were unknowingly asking for what we now call sonic branding. Six months later, the licensing model was put aside. MusicGrid shifted completely into creative music production. The company became what it is today — a creative music agency focused on sonic branding, campaign sound, and long term audio systems for brands.
In the beginning, sonic branding was still unfamiliar in the region. Clients didn’t always understand what it meant or why it mattered. A lot of early meetings started with education. What is sonic branding. Why does sound matter. How can it help build long term brand recognition and emotional connection.
Sami and the team invested in awareness. They ran campaigns, built content, launched projects, and kept showing up in conversations where sound was missing. Slowly, that started to shift.
Today, most clients already understand the value of sound. They ask better questions. They think strategically about how audio fits into their branding. That shift in mindset is a major reason why MusicGrid has grown to work with more than three hundred brands across the region.
Under Sami’s leadership, MusicGrid has helped define the sound of some of the region’s most recognisable brands.
The company created the sonic identity for Bank Albilad. Composed the full Ramadan campaign soundtrack for Mercedes Benz Middle East. Developed the audio system for Nada Dairy. Delivered more than two hundred minutes of original music and sound design for Shahid’s Little Heroes. Crafted sonic branding for Saudi government entities including ZATCA, GEOSA, and Edaat. Partnered with Nickelodeon to produce their Ramadan idents, aired across MBC3 and OSN. And built full bilingual sonic systems for fintech and mobility brands like UPayments, Tiqmo, and North Webst Bus.
From live orchestras to digital-first audio, the work is diverse but consistent in its purpose. Every note is created to help brands connect through sound.
One of the biggest lessons Sami has learned is that there is no single Gulf sound. Each country has its own creative rhythm. Saudi is not the same as Kuwait. Qatar is not the same as the UAE. Building brand sound in this region requires local understanding, cultural sensitivity, and creative accuracy.
Another key learning has been that music alone is not enough. Sound has to be tied to brand strategy. A sonic logo or theme needs to reflect the values, voice, and personality of the brand. It needs to scale. It needs to be intentional.
That is the foundation MusicGrid continues to build on.
What started as a quiet custom music request in the footer of a website has turned into one of the region’s most focused creative music agencies. Today, Sami and the team continue to help brands sound more like themselves. And with every project, they stay committed to one core belief. That music, when done right, is not just heard. It is remembered.
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