RIYADH: Top local and international artists are set to perform at AlUla to celebrate the 92nd Saudi National Day later this month, it has been announced.
The lineup was broadcast on Riyadh Boulevard City’s 82 screens with a five-minute performance by female Saudi violinist and DJ, KAYAN, who played against a backdrop of AlUla’s iconic Elephant Rock.
In its second edition, Azimuth, amplified by MDLBEAST, will include regional and local artists KAYAN, Dorar, Solskin, Dish Dash, Baloo, Biirdperson, Nomad, Gooner, ANMARZ, Vinyl Mode, Damian Lazarus, DJ Snake and Parov Stelar.
The event will start on Thursday, Sept. 22, from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. the following day. On Friday, the show will run from 4:30 p.m. until 6 a.m. on Saturday.
Saudi DJ Baloo, the man behind Azimuth 2022, said: “We’re really excited to be throwing Azimuth this year on the national day weekend, in the breathtaking and enchanting AlUla.”
The festival is set to take place in the same valley where Desert X AlUla art exhibition was hosted earlier this year.
“Everything that’s been developed for AlUla is above par and coming into this place as a music programmer we had to come in and create a festival so special to fit the magical space we’re given,” he added.
Dorrar, Solskin, DJ Snake, Dish Dash, Damian Lazarus, and Vinyl Mode will be performing on day one of Azimuth.
On day two, KAYAN, Biirdperson, Gooner, Parov Stelar, ANMARZ, and Baloo will take the stage.
Philip Jones, Royal Commission of AlUla chief management and marketing officer, told Arab News the main difference between MDLBEAST Riyadh and MDLBEAST in AlUla was that “while you might have 30,000 people in Riyadh, there will only be around a thousand in AlUla.”
Jones said it is more of an individual, tailored experience with smaller crowds.
“What we offer is very experiential that it will set us apart because it fits the brand of AlUla as a premium luxury destination, so think of it as a premium luxury festival.”
This year, AlUla Moments will present several festivals and events: Azimuth, Winter at Tantora, AlUla Wellness Festival, and for the first time The Ancient Kingdoms Festival which is inspired by 7,000 years of successive civilizations on the Arabian Peninsula and the famed incense trading route.
“One of the things we want to do is nurture and develop the entertainment industry in Saudi Arabia, and because AlUla lends itself to such amazing backdrops with film and entertainment and videos, we wanted to use it as an opportunity to really highlight that aspect of it and develop the existing local talent and showcase it,” said Jones.
Tickets are on sale at experiencealula.com.
