Beyoncé releases love song for Jay Z

Plus: Maher criticised over Zayn ‘terrorist’ joke and Sheikh Zayed Book Award winners announced.

Jay-Z and Beyoncé. AFP

Beyoncé has quietly released a love song dedicated to her husband Jay Z. The track is available only on his new streaming service, Tidal. She posted a 15-second preview of the acoustic ballad Die With You on her Facebook page on Saturday in celebration of the couple's seven-year wedding anniversary. "I don't have a reason to be if I can't be with you," Beyoncé sings softly as she plays the piano. "'Cause darling I wake up just to sleep with you / I open my eyes so I can see with you / and I live so I can die with you," she sings in the home video-style clip. The camera moves around her, eventually turning on the person doing the filming – Jay Z. The rebranded Tidal ­streaming service was launched in March by Jay Z, backed by music heavyweights including Madonna, Kanye West and Daft Punk, who will all be equity partners and offer exclusive content. Jay Z bought Tidal this year for US$56million (Dh205.6m). – AFP

Maher criticised over Zayn ‘terrorist’ joke

Comedian Bill Maher is no stranger to controversy. In October last year he earned the wrath of guest Ben Affleck, who described comments made during a debate on Islam on Real Time with Bill Maher as "gross" and "racist". But now Maher has stirred up an even bigger row – by making a joke comparing former One Direction singer Zayn Malik to a terrorist. Fans immediately took to Twitter to criticise the comedian who, in a short ­online-only segment for his show, says: "Just tell me two things, Zayn. Which one in the band were you, and where were you during the Boston Marathon?" As Maher speaks, an image of Malik appears on the screen alongside accused Boston Marathon bomber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. A hashtag reacting to the jibe soon started to appear on social media, with Twitter users demanding #RespectForZayn. The singer's fans gave examples of the charity work he has done and criticised Maher for what they said was using Malik's religion to make a joke. @1DsUniverse wrote: "The fact that calling Zayn a terrorist was allowed on tv just shows how ignorant humanity really is". @ThisIsUs0 said: "This Is So Disrespectful & So Stupid. I Don't Think Bill Realizes What He's Getting Himself Into." @pinkfloydharold said: "terrorist jokes aren't ­funny and being a Muslim doesn't make you a terrorist." Malik quit One Direction last month, shortly before the band's sell-out gig at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai last weekend. – The National staff

Sheikh Zayed Book Award winners announced

The winners of the ninth edition of the Sheikh Zayed Book Awards were unveiled yesterday. Osama Alaysa from Palestine received The Literature Award for his novel Majaneen bait lahem (The Fools of Bethlehem), while Hanawa Haruo from Japan received the Translation Award for his Japanese translation of Naguib Mahfouz's Cairo Trilogy (Palace Walk, Palace of Desire and Sugar Street). The Arab Culture in Other Languages Award went to Sugita Hideaki, also from Japan, for ­Arabian-Naito to Nihon-Jin (The Arabian Nights and the Japanese). The final award, for Publishing and Technology, went to The Arab Scientific Publishers Inc from Lebanon. The recipients will receive their awards at a ceremony next month during the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. The awards were launched in 2007 to promote scholarship and creativity in Arab culture, with cash prizes totalling ­Dh7million – Dh750,000 for each winner in eight categories. However, the board of trustees withheld four awards this year, saying the nominations did not meet the awards' standards for winning. – The National staff