Soundstorm kicks off with music legends Eminem, Linkin Park

RIYADH: Eminem, Linkin Park, A$AP Rocky and Calvin Harris were among the big names that rocked Riyadh for MDLBeast Soundstorm, with hitmaker Camila Cabello set to perform on Saturday.

American rapper Eminem, also known as Slim Shady, performed on Thursday, introducing himself as the Arabified “Saleem Shadi.”

The concert began with a video depicting a mock “breaking news” segment announcing the death of Eminem on the big screen, before he emerged to perform his song “Lucifer.”

Rapper Mr. Porter was Eminem’s hypeman during the show, and the duo partook in comedic conversations between each song, dropping hints on what song will be played next and interacting with the crowd.

Skylar Grey, singer-songwriter and record producer, was a guest star during the concert, performing during hit songs “Monster” and “Love the Way You Lie.”

Eminem and Grey spoiled the crowd with an emotional performance of the rapper’s most recent song “Temporary,” an ode to his daughter Hailie Mathers, with a backdrop of archival videos of her as a child.

The rapper showed his admiration and love for Saudi Arabia throughout the concert, including teasing comments about moving to the Kingdom.

The concert concluded with a bittersweet moment, as Eminem performed his most popular song “Lose Yourself,” the theme song for Eminem’s semi-biographical movie “8 Mile.”

American rock band Linkin Park also performed on Thursday. The group is back on the road this year for the first time since their original co-lead vocalist Chester Bennington’s death in 2017. His replacement is Emily Armstrong, who performed new songs as well as throwbacks “In the End” and “Numb/Encore.”

In just a few years since its launch in 2019, MDLBEAST Soundstorm has established itself as the Gulf’s biggest music festival, but has also staked a claim to being the world’s largest rave — last year’s event reportedly drew in 730,000 attendees.

This year’s three-day music festival will witness more than 150 artists performing in 10 different areas around the festival venue. Once again, the focus in on electronic dance music, with the vast majority of performers being DJ-producers — from global A-listers like David Guetta and Armin Van Buuren to local luminaries like Baloo and Biirdperson.