Russell Peters on acting his age and why he's unfazed by cancel culture

Russell Peters is all set to perform at Maraya, AlUla for the first time on Friday evening.

The world-renowned stand-up comedian, 51, says he is excited to hit the stage, telling The National: "I had never heard of AlUla before. When I got here, I was like, 'Wow this is amazing!'"

Peters is bringing his latest world tour, Act Your Age, to Saudi Arabia, which includes conversations about cancel culture, the world today and how he's evolved over the years.

"I talk about a lot of things, the history of how we got to such an extreme space in this world. I talk about how every part of our life is extreme nowadays and there's nothing normal any more," he says. "Just think about what we came out of, the pandemic, that was just to remind you things were extreme."

Peters was in Los Angeles when the pandemic hit and says: "I hadn't been to Canada for two years. But it changed my life. I started in one direction in life and ended up in a completely different direction by the end of it."

Russell Peters is bringing his Act Your Age World Tour to AlUla in Saudi Arabia. Photo: Instagram / Russell Peters

Fans of the comedian should expect a different pace with the Act Your Age World Tour.

"It's a bit different from the rest of my shows, it's a little bit more mature ... trying to reason with the immature me. I'm going to be 52 this year. So I'm not a young kid anymore who can get away with 'why do people do this'. Now, I have to take responsibility for why things are that the way they are."

And it's going to be a significant year as he's also getting married this month, two days after his AlUla gig, in fact. "Yes, I'm here, two days before I get married," he says. "That says a lot about how much I want to be here. I'm happy to be here."

Peters is marrying Ali Peters, who regularly appears on his Culturally Cancelled podcast.

When asked if it's a tough time to be a comedian now, with audiences becoming more sensitive, he said: "Maybe it is tough for new comedians, not for me.

"People aren't coming to see me change, they're coming to see me do what I do. As for somebody from cancel culture, they're never going to watch me to begin with, so I'm okay."

Russell Peters enjoying the Cortona on the Move photography exhibition in AlJadidah, AlUla's new arts, culture and dining district. Photo: Russell Peters

Of his preconceived notions about performing in Saudi Arabia, Peters said he knew the country was "completely different from what is portrayed in western media" the moment he arrived.

"I wanted to come back and explore it even further," he says of the country. "I loved the first time I came [here] in 2016. So it's been six years and when they asked if I wanted to come back, I said of course."

Peters says his goal while visiting countries is "not to perpetuate stereotypes" but to discover what the real people are like "and what the real situation" is.

"And I think that's why people connect with what I'm saying because they realise 'oh he's been there, he's done that and he knows what we are really about', so I think people trust me to come in and see what's really happening and spread that word," he says.

"I remember the last time I came [here], I made a couple of friends and one of them was a Bedouin guy who didn't speak a word of English and even though we didn't speak the same language, I had such a great time. We were just communicating through facial expressions, he just made me laugh."

Peters arrived in AlUla on Wednesday. "I would love to come back and visit Jeddah." Explaining that he will continue his world tour after the wedding, he revealed that "in about two weeks I will be performing in Bahrain and Dubai."

Since this interview, Peters has announced a Dubai gig at City Walk's Coca-Cola Arena on Tuesday, March 8.

See highlights from Russell Peters's 2019 Coca-Cola Arena performance here:

Russell Peters , stand-up comedian and actor performing at the new Coca Cola Arena, City Walk in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
People enjoying the Russell Peters show held at the new Coca Cola Arena, City Walk in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
Russell Peters , stand-up comedian and actor performing at the new Coca Cola Arena, City Walk in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
People enjoying the Russell Peters show held at the new Coca Cola Arena, City Walk in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
People enjoying the Russell Peters show held at the new Coca Cola Arena, City Walk in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
People enjoying the Russell Peters show held at the new Coca Cola Arena, City Walk in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
Russell Peters , stand-up comedian and actor performing at the new Coca Cola Arena, City Walk in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National

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.”

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Russell Peters on acting his age and why he's unfazed by cancel culture

The Canadian stand-up comedian will perform in AlUla in Saudi Arabia on February 18

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