You needed to see it to believe it.
Nine years ago today, Snoop Dogg, clad in a beige kandoura and sporting a red-chequered ghutra, swaggered on to the Du Arena stage to the horn-soaked sounds of G Funk (Intro).
The response was awe and disbelief. After a few seconds of collective shock, the 15,000-strong crowd immediately whipped out their phones to record this heavily pixelated (we were in the age of the prehistoric iPhone 4 at the time) piece of UAE music history.
The Doggfather’s show, held on what was a sweltering evening, was a cultural and entertainment landmark for both the UAE and the region.
He was not the first hip-hop star to hold a major stand-alone concert in the UAE (the previous year Kanye West had performed as part of the Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix), but he was the first popular western act to play a near-full concert wearing the traditional Emirati dress.
While these touchstones may seem trivial now, at the time, they were nothing short of pioneering.
Snoop Dogg’s successful Abu Dhabi show, alongside Kanye West’s concert, paved the way for a host of top rappers such as Jay-Z, Eminem, 50 Cent and J Cole to view the UAE and the region as a viable touring destination.
And when it comes to his sartorial choice, Snoop Dogg’s decision to perform in a kandoura influenced opinions both home and abroad. Here, it created a newfound consensus that celebrities can wear the traditional dress, if it’s to pay tribute to the country. Abroad, the images of Snoop Dogg in flowing robes was more impactful than any regional tourism campaign. It is no coincidence that after Snoop Dogg, a whole host of celebrities started rocking the kandoura, such as Tyreese (the singer even wore it on his flight back to Los Angeles) and, most recently, talk show host Steve Harvey.
To mark the anniversary of the concert, The National spoke to some of the players involved in the event.
The promoter: John Lickrish, chief executive of Flash Entertainment
The Canadian entertainment boss recalls that after the success of the first two Abu Dhabi F1 concerts, the Snoop Dogg show was part of Flash Entertainment’s strategy to kick-start a new phase of Yas Island offerings.
“We wanted to bring more people there and show that there is more to this great location than the F1,” he says.
“So the Snoop Dogg show was part of a number of events we did such as Creamfields, the Shakira and Amr Diab concert, outdoor movie screenings and a kids' funfair.”
Regarding the decision to bring Snoop Dogg to the capital, Lickrish said the move was a way to tap into a youth market hungry for live music.
“It was about creating a bucket-list moment,” he says. “Not many people imagined that Snoop Dogg would ever play in the UAE and we wanted to make that happen. So we called up his team and they said they were interested.”
With nearly two decades in the industry at that time, Lickrish recalls the professionalism of the artist and his entourage. Snoop Dogg stayed in the UAE for less than 24 hours. After arriving from the US, the rapper rested, sound-checked and then held informal meet and greets with fans who gifted him all sorts of items, ranging from a hockey jersey with the name The Doggfather emblazoned on the back of a kandoura.
Lickrish only knew about Snoop’s decision to wear the latter on stage a few hours before the show.
While admitting to be slightly worried at the reaction from the crowd, Lickrish realised that all would be OK due to the authentic affection Snoop Dogg had for the attire.
“You could just tell that he was genuine about it,” he says. “This was his first time performing in the Gulf and he wanted to pay tribute. Now, there were some who were not happy with that and we got letters from people angry at him wearing the traditional dress because of what his music represents. But that’s the thing with Snoop Dogg, you either love him or hate him.”
The supporting act: Swerte from The Recipe
Warming up the stage for the main act were the UAE’s very own music OGs, The Recipe.
In what was a rarity for the time, the hip-hop crew were one of several supporting acts that night, which included the Emirati duo Desert Heat and fierce Lebanese rapper Malikah.
According to The Recipe’s Swerte, the supporting line-up was not entirely surprising. They were, in fact, the usual suspects.
“A lot of that was because a lot of artists were not doing the right things to position themselves to be considered for the opportunity to perform and open for big acts like Snoop Dogg. The talent was there but what they needed to do was to be noticeable,” he says.
“We had been working hard as a band and building an artist CV, so to speak, to show promoters that we could do it. It was the same with Malikah and Desert Heat. We were really the only three hip-hop acts that were ready at the time. I knew this because we would always see each other at the same events and parties.”
The Snoop Dogg experience was a career milestone for The Recipe, and marked the first of two performances at the Du Arena – their follow-up gig was a 2014 slot supporting Macklemore and Ryan Lewis.
The drive to reach that level, Swerte explains, came when the band watched Kanye West perform at Du Arena in 2010.
“I remember us looking at each other and saying ‘I wonder what it would be like looking at the crowd from that stage?',” he recalls.
And when the time finally came a year later, how was that experience?
“I felt like I was going to pass out from all the emotion and sink,” he says. “But once we stepped out on to the stage and heard the crowd, it all just went away.”
The legacy: Snoop Dogg made YouTube popular in Saudi Arabia
While Hass "Big Hass" Dennaoui was not able to attend the performance, the Saudi Arabian music personality said the concert reverberated around the Gulf's hip-hop scene.
For one thing, it was the first time that young Saudis really interacted with YouTube.
"You have to understand that YouTube was launched in 2005, but even in 2011, not many of us were using it," Dennaoui explains. "But I remember the first real YouTube videos really being shared around were Snoop Dogg performing in a kandoura. When I saw it, I couldn't believe it. I thought he was a local act performing. Only once I heard him rapping I realised that this was actually him."
Regarding the concert’s impact on the Gulf hip-hop scene, Dennaoui’s response is unequivocal.
“It was monumental in every single way," he says. “It was also important for the hip-hop scene here. At that time, there was a lot of stereotypes regarding hip-hop and with Snoop coming here, and people from all around the Gulf flying to see him and having a great time put some of those misconceptions away.”
Squad
Ali Kasheif, Salim Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Ali Mabkhout, Omar Abdulrahman, Mohammed Al Attas, Abdullah Ramadan, Zayed Al Ameri (Al Jazira), Mohammed Al Shamsi, Hamdan Al Kamali, Mohammed Barghash, Khalil Al Hammadi (Al Wahda), Khalid Essa, Mohammed Shaker, Ahmed Barman, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Al Hassan Saleh, Majid Suroor (Sharjah) Walid Abbas, Ahmed Khalil (Shabab Al Ahli), Tariq Ahmed, Jasim Yaqoub (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmeen (Al Wasl), Hassan Al Muharami (Baniyas)
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The low down
Producers: Uniglobe Entertainment & Vision Films
Director: Namrata Singh Gujral
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Nargis Fakhri, Bo Derek, Candy Clark
Rating: 2/5
How to turn your property into a holiday home
- Ensure decoration and styling – and portal photography – quality is high to achieve maximum rates.
- Research equivalent Airbnb homes in your location to ensure competitiveness.
- Post on all relevant platforms to reach the widest audience; whether you let personally or via an agency know your potential guest profile – aiming for the wrong demographic may leave your property empty.
- Factor in costs when working out if holiday letting is beneficial. The annual DCTM fee runs from Dh370 for a one-bedroom flat to Dh1,200. Tourism tax is Dh10-15 per bedroom, per night.
- Check your management company has a physical office, a valid DTCM licence and is licencing your property and paying tourism taxes. For transparency, regularly view your booking calendar.
Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre V6
Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 355Nm at 5,200rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
Price: Dh179,999-plus
On sale: now
Changing visa rules
For decades the UAE has granted two and three year visas to foreign workers, tied to their current employer. Now that's changing.
Last year, the UAE cabinet also approved providing 10-year visas to foreigners with investments in the UAE of at least Dh10 million, if non-real estate assets account for at least 60 per cent of the total. Investors can bring their spouses and children into the country.
It also approved five-year residency to owners of UAE real estate worth at least 5 million dirhams.
The government also said that leading academics, medical doctors, scientists, engineers and star students would be eligible for similar long-term visas, without the need for financial investments in the country.
The first batch - 20 finalists for the Mohammed bin Rashid Medal for Scientific Distinction.- were awarded in January and more are expected to follow.
If you go
The flights
There are various ways of getting to the southern Serengeti in Tanzania from the UAE. The exact route and airstrip depends on your overall trip itinerary and which camp you’re staying at.
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Kilimanjaro International Airport from Dh1,350 return, including taxes; this can be followed by a short flight from Kilimanjaro to the Serengeti with Coastal Aviation from about US$700 (Dh2,500) return, including taxes. Kenya Airways, Emirates and Etihad offer flights via Nairobi or Dar es Salaam.
BABYLON
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Sri Lanka v England
First Test, at Galle
England won by 211
Second Test, at Kandy
England won by 57 runs
Third Test, at Colombo
From Nov 23-27
Brief scores:
Toss: India, opted to field
Australia 158-4 (17 ov)
Maxwell 46, Lynn 37; Kuldeep 2-24
India 169-7 (17 ov)
Dhawan 76, Karthik 30; Zampa 2-22
Result: Australia won by 4 runs by D/L method
