Not long ago, Jannis Stürtz was at home in Berlin, checking the Instagram and Twitter pages for his record label, Habibi Funk. The former has 75,000 followers, testament to the treasure trove of information about “eclectic sounds from the Arab world” the feed contains: DJ mixes, old photos, posters, potted artist biographies, material that frequently goes beyond the stated remit and takes in visual art, film and sport. But one new name among the followers stood out: “Drake started following the Habibi Funk Twitter feed,” says Stürtz, in delighted tones. “Cool! I mean, that doesn’t make sense in my head, but cool!”
Of course, if you were a famous rapper looking for new musical influences, you could do worse than check out Habibi Funk. Since 2015, the label has put…