Rap fans in Abu Dhabi are a lucky bunch, with Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Jay Z and Kanye West all having stormed the capital in recent times. That lineage was extended at du Arena on Friday with a trio of debut performances in the city.
The prolific East London grime godfather Wiley opened proceedings, nodding to his latter-day chart success, via Heatwave and Wearing My Rolex, and his grimy beginnings, with snatches of his breakthrough 2004 single Wot Do U Call It?
It took until Rick Ross for the youthful crowd to truly come alive, however, with a set heavy on his latest album, Mastermind. The rotund Floridian rapper’s relative lack of movement wasn’t mirrored by the crowd. Our only gripe was that he derailed the energetic, club-rocking momentum by regularly switching tracks after only one or two verses.
The Grammy-winning Seattle duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis have developed a flair for working an audience, even though their 75-minute set stretched a little thin. Macklemore, aka Ben Haggerty, was an almost cartoonish live wire, dressed in a black vest and skinny jeans, with fetching pink high-top trainers. Alongside his behind-the-decks partner Lewis, he socked it to anybody who might daub them with a one-hit-wonder tag, aided by live strings, brass and backing dancers.
They dropped that song (Thrift Shop) surprisingly early to a riotous response. Same Love unrepentantly covered brave subject matter. And while Can't Hold Us shouldn't match Thrift Shop, it caused similar uproar, driven by its rave-esque keyboard line.
The encore was slightly surreal, featuring Haggerty’s glam rock alter ego Sir Raven Bowie (replete with mullet wig) and an ode to his Irish heritage. But the brevity of the pair’s back catalogue was demonstrated when Can’t Hold Us was dusted down for a second outing.
There was no disputing Haggerty’s heartfelt intent, however, when he paused to laud “the most diverse audience” that he’d ever played in front of – it felt like a moment of genuine sincerity all too rare in 21st-century hip-hop.
•Read about Macklemore's social media posts about Abu Dhabi here
aworkman@thenational.ae
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
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
Results
STAGE
1 . Filippo Ganna (Ineos) - 0:13:56
2. Stefan Bissegger (Education-Nippo) - 0:00:14
3. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:21
4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:24
5. Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana) - 0:00:30
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 4:00:05
2. Joao Almeida (QuickStep) - 0:00:05
3. Mattia Cattaneo (QuickStep) - 0:00:18
4. Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma) - 0:00:33
5. Adam Yates (Ineos) - 0:00:39
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
