From Madlib to The Alchemist: Toe-tap your way through the work day with our #stayhome DJ playlist

Post-Its are lined on your coffee table, three dozen Chrome tabs are slowing down your computer, you’ve been drinking more coffee than usual and when you stand up to stretch, the bones in your back crack like a grating orchestra.

You might be needing a little pick-me-up groove to manoeuvre better through it all. Something to give you rhythm as you work from home. That's why this #stayhome playlist, which comes as part of The National's efforts to encourage people to stay indoors to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, is all about introducing you – and the desk jockey within you – to some outstanding DJs and artists.

Their work can help you get through the work day with some toe-tapping beats – think music to get you in a groove without being obtrusive.

Otis Jackson Jr – better known as Madlib – starts off the playlist with a track that utilises samples from Bollywood playback singers Minoo Purshottam and Lata Mangeshkar. The number is the perfect sign of what’s to come.

Expect works by DJ Premier and J Dilla, both acclaimed and legendary producers, who have worked with some of the biggest names in hip-hop. DJ Premier has laid down tracks for the likes of Anderson .Paak, Mos Def, Nas and Common while J Dilla, who died in 2006 from lupus three days after the release of his legendary Donuts, produced a number of celebrated albums, including Common's Like Water for Chocolate and A Tribe Called Quest's The Love Movement. He also collaborated with Madlib in a project dubbed Jaylib.

Flying Lotus, Onra and The Alchemist also make appearances on the playlist, as does a glitch-grooved track by American electronic musician The Flashbulb and UK producer Bonobo. The playlist’s penultimate track is a brassy banger by DJ Quik, wrapping up with a funky electro-tarab track by Syrian producer Samer Saem Eldahr, known as Hello Psychaleppo.

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From Bob Marley to Koffee: vibe out with our new #stayhome reggae playlist

From George Michael to Sade: celebrate the saxophone’s place in pop music with our #stayhome playlist

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India squad

Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, K.L. Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Shivam Dube, Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Deepak Chahar, Mohammed Shami, Shardul Thakur.

Gifts exchanged

King Charles - replica of President Eisenhower Sword
Queen Camilla - Tiffany & Co vintage 18-carat gold, diamond and ruby flower brooch
Donald Trump - hand-bound leather book with Declaration of Independence
Melania Trump - personalised Anya Hindmarch handbag

MATCH INFO

Jersey 147 (20 overs)

UAE 112 (19.2 overs)

Jersey win by 35 runs

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

The specs: 2018 Ford Mustang GT

Price, base / as tested: Dh204,750 / Dh241,500
Engine: 5.0-litre V8
Gearbox: 10-speed automatic
Power: 460hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque: 569Nm @ 4,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 10.3L / 100km

On Women's Day

Dr Nawal Al-Hosany: Why more women should be on the frontlines of climate action

Samar Elmnhrawy: How companies in the Middle East can catch up on gender equality

The National Editorial: Is there much to celebrate on International Women's Day 2021?

Justin Thomas: Challenge the notion that 'men are from Mars, women are from Venus'

NO OTHER LAND

Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

Rating: 3.5/5

PROFILE

Name: Enhance Fitness

Year started: 2018

Based: UAE

Employees: 200

Amount raised: $3m

Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors

THREE

%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Nayla%20Al%20Khaja%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Jefferson%20Hall%2C%20Faten%20Ahmed%2C%20Noura%20Alabed%2C%20Saud%20Alzarooni%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat

World Cricket League Division 2

In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.

UAE fixtures

Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final

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.”