In partnership with ITP Media Group, Complex announces its expansion into the Middle East and North Africa with the launch of Complex MENA, a bilingual, social-first, video-led platform covering music, style, sneakers, sports, food, and popular culture.
Built for the way culture actually moves in the region, Complex MENA is a new home for the voices and scenes shaping what the Middle East and North Africa listens to, wears, debates, collects, and creates. The publication brings Complex’s global editorial DNA into constant conversation with regional realities, offering coverage grounded in lived experience and cultural context.
The launch arrives at a moment of real momentum. From the energy of Egypt and Lebanon’s entertainment industries, to the UAE’s fashion, retail, and creative ecosystems, to the sports cultures shaping Saudi Arabia and North Africa, the region’s youth culture is expanding outward with confidence. Complex MENA creates a shared space where creators, writers, athletes, fans, and cultural moments live side by side, with depth, intention, and clarity.
Complex MENA will publish social and video content in both Arabic and English, reflecting the linguistic diversity of the region and the many dialects and voices that shape it. An English-language website will anchor long-form storytelling, reporting, and global-facing features, designed to place regional stories into the wider cultural conversation.
At the core of the publication is a growing network of editors, writers, filmmakers, producers, and creators based in Dubai, Riyadh, Cairo, Tunis, Amman, Beirut, Ramallah, Casablanca, and beyond. Together, the team is building a platform that is regionally rooted and globally connected.
The launch lineup blends established global IP with original regional formats. Flagship series include GOAT Talk, where artists, athletes, and cultural figures narrate their personal stories through the tracks, films, wins, memories, and moments that shaped them. Additional original series will roll out across TikTok, Instagram, Snap, and YouTube, highlighting regional figures across music, film, sports, style, and the digital world.
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Beyond content, Complex MENA introduces a wider cultural ecosystem. This includes exclusive regional storytelling, limited-edition merchandise and collaboration drops, a collectible print edition, and a calendar of community-led moments and meetups. These initiatives will lead into the first-ever ComplexCon MENA, bringing the brand’s globally recognised cultural festival to the region for the first time.
“Complex MENA represents a new chapter for our youth culture, a place where the region can see itself clearly, loudly, and on its own terms,” said Maha ElNabawi, Editor-in-Chief of Complex MENA. “Our aim is to build with the community, create space for their stories, and amplify them globally.”
For partners and advertisers, Complex MENA offers access to a highly engaged, culturally fluent audience through premium video IP, social-native storytelling, editorial integrations, experiential activations, and commerce-driven collaborations. With its social-first distribution, bilingual approach, and regional reach, the platform is positioned as a gateway into youth culture across the Middle East and North Africa.
Complex MENA is now live, marking the beginning of a year-round cultural conversation, one that connects regional creativity to the global Complex universe while staying firmly grounded in the realities of the region it represents.
To all reading, welcome. The journey will be a rewarding one.
