Calling all UAE promoters: Seun Kuti wants to perform in the country. The Nigerian artist said he and his 80-piece Egyptian band were to perform at last year's Womad festival in Abu Dhabi but the event was indefinitely postponed. Speaking at the Mawazine festival in Morocco, Kuti said he still wants to tour the UAE. "The UAE has such an international audience," he said. "If it can be arranged, I would consider it. It will be a great experience; our show has lot of energy." Look out for our interview with Seun Kuti in Arts&Life soon. – The National staff
Cheb Mami rues state of Raï music
Cheb Mami is not happy with the current state of Raï music. The Algerian singer, known as the Prince of Raï, said the once politically charged genre has given way to cheap pop thrills. "There is no weight to it," he said at Mawazine. "It's all takeaway music, like McDonald's." Mami found international fame in 1999 after his Desert Rose duet with Sting. He is working on a new album that will be out later this year. – The National staff
French hip-hoppers find fame
Sexion d'Assaut are considering targeting the English speaking market. Since 2002, the eight-piece French collective, whose members hail from France, the Congo, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Mali, dominated the charts in French-speaking countries in Europe, Africa and Canada. Their 2012 single Ma Direction got praise from Perez Hilton, who said: "Everything is better in France, even their hip-hop!" At Mawazine, the rapper Maître Gims said that while the group would continue to rap in French, they might work with American MCs in the near future. "We want to do one more album first," he said. "After that we are open to the idea of working with other people abroad." – The National staff
Daft Punk sets new record on Spotify
Random Access Memories, the French electronic duo Daft Punk's new album, had the biggest number of streams in its first week in the US. Spotify did not release the number of streams but Daft Punk beat the eight million streams Mumford & Sons set with Babel last year. Random Access Memories is the Grammy-winning group's fourth album. They also set a Spotify record last month when their song Get Lucky had the biggest streaming day for a single track in the US and the UK. Since its debut, Get Lucky has been streamed more than 27 million times. – AP
McCartney leaves gift behind on first visit to Graceland
According to the official Twitter account of Paul McCartney, the former Beatle dropped his guitar pick on Elvis Presley's grave and said he did it so that "Elvis can play in heaven". A lifelong Elvis fan, McCartney toured Graceland, Presley's Memphis mansion, on Sunday. – AP
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