Anmarz – or, when he’s not behind decks, Anmar Madani – is a man currently sat right at the heart of Saudi’s surging music scene, though he’s not sitting very still.
As well as being a house-leaning DJ, he has design studio 9SSCREATIVE and works on the branding of all MDLBeast’s big parties and launches, such as this month's Soundstorm, MDLBeast Presents at Onyx Arena, and the new Riyadh club, attaché. And that’s not to mention his three children.
Here, the Jeddah-based Saudi national takes a moment to share his top spots across the country to DJ or dance – or both (even though, deep down, he still prefers underground house parties).
Balad Beast, Jeddah
This is my favourite.
I like the whole atmosphere at Balad Beast, especially how it’s embedded in the historic section of Jeddah. It’s close to home; I’m from here, so it means a lot to me. I like the crowd that goes, too. At the last event, I think they even had some families coming in during the daytime. And I like the acts they bring over. I’m a big hip-hop fan, and they got Wu Tang [Clan] and then Busta Rhymes. I’m a child of the 90s, so to me, that was just epic. All that said, it’s very hard to say any one place is my number one, because all of them have their perks and ups and downs.
Balad Beast just has the mood and the type of party I want to go to.
Balad Beast 2025, January 30 & 31, 2025
Al Balad, Jeddah
@mdlbeast mdlbeast.com
Kokub, AlUla
In terms of being beautiful and out of this world, Kokub would top my list.
They had a series [of DJ events] last year. We [played there] Baloo and I, back-to-back. I think it was New Year’s Eve or the weekend before. Just being in AlUla in general is magical. It’s ridiculous. You’re in between two mountains, and it’s insanely gorgeous. I don’t think there’s any place in the world like it. The venue is open-air, and the location is so historic. The big festival they have there is called AZIMUTH – it started becoming a destination about four years ago. They have these very cool rock formations. It has this mysticism to it. And when I say magical, I do mean magic: the whole feeling, the environment, the way it looks, everything about it. Everybody who goes there comes back and has this sort of euphoric feeling.
AlUla 43553
@experiencealula
Soundstorm, Riyadh
Soundstorm has a special place in my heart because it was the big festival that opened up all the doors for everybody.
It changed the whole complexion of Saudi in terms of the music scene and the industry itself. The one in 2019 specifically hit the most, in terms of impact. Even now, everybody, all the DJs, the local ones, when you talk about the first [Soundstorm], they will give you that look that says: “Yeah, that was just mind-blowing.” Because nobody expected it. I remember [the organisers] came out three months prior, four months at most, and were like: “Hey, we want to do a festival in Saudi.” I was sceptical. But then, as we moved along and started doing the flyers and seeing the calibre of DJs that were coming, it started becoming a reality. Then, when we got there, the venue was built. I walked in before the festival. They were doing a soundcheck. I sat in the middle of one of the underground stages and they were playing through these big speakers hanging from cranes, it was super loud. I was just like: “Woah, this is actually really happening.” We saw all these huge, global DJs playing these big rooms to thousands of people, and everybody was loving it. The energy was great. It was definitely an experience to remember.
MDLBeast Soundstorm 2024,
From December 12 - 14, Banban, Riyadh
@mdlbeast.soundstorm
Buy your tickets here
Beast House, Riyadh
It’s always a nice place to play because it’s comfortable, it’s cosy, and it’s small. I’m not a big fan of the massive, thousands-of-people places. I’m very much into the intimacy of the underground scene.
So, I like rooms with 20 or 100 people, or, if it’s a club, probably up to 350, 400 at most. There’s a certain energy that comes with that sort of intimacy and approachability, that you can have with the artists and the crowd. Everybody’s kind of cosied up together. In the big rooms, your stage is so far away that there’s a disconnect. Especially when nowadays there’s a reverence for the DJs – the whole crowd is facing them. I think we’ve lost touch with what the dance floor was supposed to be about: dancing and having fun, and we’re just there to help people have that.
I prefer it when you walk into somebody’s basement and someone’s playing some tracks that nobody’s ever heard, some garage DJ that kind of blows your mind. That, to me, is way more impactful and memorable.
Al Dariyah Al Jadidah, Riyadh 13732
@_beasthouse
beast.house
Egra, Riyadh
The Erga [parties] are really intense. They have a warehouse-y, dirty, kind of grimy, intense energy, in an abandoned hospital [Irqah Hospital in the Irqah neighbourhood of Riyadh]. I think they’ve probably had six or seven shows over there now. I played one. The people over there were crazy. It was one of those nights, with very high energy. And that meant the energy on the dance floor was very intense.
