3 UAE celebrities among Forbes Middle East top 100 list

Egyptian singer, Amr Diab, is on top of the list with over 30.6 million followers

Forbes Middle East has ranked 100 Arab celebrities from across the Middle East in their latest edition. The list reveals the region's favorite personalities based on their length of time in the industry, their influence, and their social media following. Egypt, Lebanon, and Syria lead the ranking, with 46 of the stars coming from Egypt, and 24 calling Lebanon home.
Egyptian singer, Amr Diab, is on top of the list with over 30.6 million followers across his social media platforms. Since he started out over three decades ago, Diab has endorsed some of world's biggest brands such as Pepsi and Vodafone, and set up his own online store 'Amr Diab World'.
There are three celebrities on the list from the UAE-singers Ahlam Alshamsi and Hussain Al Jassmi, and sports commentator Faris Awad, have a combined social media following of over 40 million. Palestine, Iraq, Yemen and Algeria each have a singer on the list. The combined social media fan following for all the celebrities is over 1 billion. Singers rule the ranking with 51 celebrities, followed by 37 actors and 11 presenters. Adel Emam is the highest ranked actor. The only composer to break the top 100 is Hassan El Shafei.
Diab is followed by two best-selling Lebanese singers, Nancy Ajram and Elissa, with over 48 million and 43 million followers. Nancy became a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF in 2009 and is a popular judge on Arab Idol. She also has a number of brand endorsements under her belt. Elissa-often called the Queen of Romance-has created her own perfumes and is also a talent show judge on X-factor Arabia.
Khuloud Al Omian, Editor-in-Chief, Forbes Middle East said: "This list for the very first time showcases the quality of talent across the Middle East region, especially in the arts of music and acting. The sheer number of fans following these celebrities is a testament to the growing potential of the region's entertainment industry. With the advent of social media, fans can truly appreciate and support their favorite celebrities irrespective of their country of origin."