DUBAI: Saudi hip-hop promoter and radio host Hass Dennaoui (aka Big Hass) is known as one of the regional independent music scene’s most influential figures. Big Hass started the Kingdom’s first FM radio hip-hop show — “Laish Hip-Hop?” — in 2011, introducing Saudi listeners to what he calls “real” hip-hop. By which he means socially conscious, smart rap, as opposed to the commercial “bottles-and-girls” tracks that clutter up the charts.
Dennaoui relocated to Dubai from Saudi around 18 months ago “to give my autistic son a better life” and recently revived an events series that he launched in Jeddah in 2013, The Beat.
“Its main aim is to feature local, up-and-coming artists from the community and give them a platform to perform live,” he told Arab News.
Last weekend saw the first The Beat DXB take place. It featured performances from Lebanese singer-songwriter Jamil Jabbour, Sudanese R&B/soul singer Reem Ekay, and Serbian singer and pianist Aleksandra Krstic.
“The main reason I wanted to launch with these artists was simply because they don’t perform that often in Dubai,” Dennaoui explained. “Jamil Jabbour is very talented with a very strong voice, but he rarely gets the chance to do originals. Reem’s vibe is just incredible, but The Beat DXB was her first live performance in two years! And Aleks is one of my favorite singers in Dubai. We also got a special appearance by Double A the Preacherman who freestyled using lyrics we gave him on the spot, which proved to be very entertaining.”
Dennaoui described the night as “amazing,” saying: “What I personally enjoyed was the fact that the audience was there listening to each and every song: There was no talking, no drinking, no distraction, simply a connection made between the artist and the audience, and watching that was a true blessing.
“I received a lot of great feedback,” he continued. “I expect big things for The Beat DXB.”
The Saudi artist giving traditional crafts a new voice
Fatimah Al-Nemer honors generational knowledge through collaborations with Saudi craftswomen
Updated 24 May 2025
Hebshi Alshammari
RIYADH: What if traditional crafts were not relics of the past but blueprints for the future? Saudi artist Fatimah Al-Nemer, whose work is on show at Riyadh’s Naila Art Gallery, transforms ancestral materials into contemporary narratives, blending palm fronds, clay, and wool with concept and meaning.
For Al-Nemer, heritage is not something to simply preserve behind glass. It is something to touch, reshape and retell. And traditional crafts are far more than manual skills; they are living archives.
“In the Arabian Peninsula, people adapted to their environment by turning clay, palm fronds, and wool into tools for survival and then into objects of timeless beauty,” she told Arab News.
Saudi Arabia’s traditional crafts, shaped over generations, carry stories that Fatimah Al-Nemer reinterprets through contemporary art techniques. (Supplied)
These crafts, shaped over generations, carry stories that Al-Nemer reinterprets through contemporary art.
Her project, Al-Kar, exemplifies this approach. Named after the traditional climbing tool used by date harvesters, the piece was created in collaboration with Saudi craftswomen.
Al-Nemer transformed humble palm fibers into a three-meter-long rug, elevating simple material into a conceptual installation.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Through her work, Fatimah Al-Nemer dissolves the boundaries between craft and art, heritage and modernity.
• Those curious about the artist’s work can view some of her pieces at solo exhibition ‘Memory of Clay,’ held at Naila Art Gallery until May 30.
“This is not merely an aesthetic celebration,” she said. “It’s a rewriting of our communal identity. Our heritage is rich — not only in materials, but in stories.”
Artist Fatima Al-Nemer with her artworks. (Supplied)
Her work goes beyond decorative craft; she treats traditional practices as conceptual frameworks, weaving narratives through textiles, clay and palm fiber.
Her collaborations with artisans ensure that generational knowledge is embedded in each piece. “The material is never separate from the experience,” she added. “It becomes witness — marked by the presence of women, place and memory.”
Participation in international exhibitions has expanded Al-Nemer’s artistic outlook, allowing her to view local materials like clay and textiles as globally resonant.
This is not merely an aesthetic celebration. It’s a rewriting of our communal identity. Our heritage is rich — not only in materials, but in stories.
Fatimah Al-Nemer, Saudi artist
“The global art scene recontextualizes challenges like the marginalization of craft, and transforms them into dialogues about identity and memory,” she said.
For Al-Nemer, craftswomen are not merely implementers, but collaborators. “They carry manual intelligence honed across generations,” she added, commending institutions like Saudi Arabia’s Heritage Commission and Herfa Association that are now empowering artisans in alignment with the Kingdom’s cultural transformation.
A person contemplates an artwork by Fatima Al-Nemer. (Supplied)
“Craft is no longer confined to the past — it is a living contemporary practice with global relevance,” she said.
Those curious about the artist’s work can view some of her items at solo exhibition “Memory of Clay,” held at Naila Art Gallery until May 30.
The exhibition offers a contemplative journey into themes of memory, belonging and identity transformation, using clay as a visual and cultural symbol.
Artist Fatimah Al-Nemer answers questions from the audience at her exhibition, "Memory of Clay," which runs in Riyadh until May 30. (Supplied)
Featuring 12 works created through mixed media and a combination of traditional and contemporary techniques, Al-Nemer reimagines ancient Saudi crafts through a modernist lens, presenting clay not simply as raw material, but as a timekeeper and silent witness to human evolution.
“Clay is not just a medium,” she said. “It is a mirror of our collective memory, shaped as we are shaped, cracking to reveal hidden layers of nostalgia and wisdom.”
This philosophy materializes in the tactile depth, earthy hues and intricate details that define her works — each piece echoing the raw pulse of life.
To young Saudi women hoping to innovate through craft, Al-Nemer offers this message: “Believe in the value of what you hold. The world doesn’t just want the product — it wants the story behind it.”
With expanding institutional support and evolving creative spaces, the artist sees an opportunity: “Craft can thrive as both art and enterprise as long as authenticity remains at its core.”
Through her work, Al-Nemer dissolves the boundaries between craft and art, heritage and modernity.
Every thread and every texture becomes a testament to identity — crafted by hand, read by the eye and understood by the heart.
Guns N’ Roses wow Riyadh as part of 2025 global tour
Iconic band make major stop on Middle East leg of schedule
Updated 24 May 2025
Arab News
RIYADH: Iconic American rock band Guns N’ Roses performed in Riyadh on Friday as part of their 2025 global tour, marking a major stop on the band’s Middle East schedule.
The group, which was formed in Los Angeles in 1985, took the stage to a packed crowd, kicking off the night with “Welcome to the Jungle.”
The concert was organized by MDLBEAST. (Supplied)
The high-energy set featured classic hits including “November Rain,” “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” and “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” with fans singing along throughout.
The concert was organized by MDLBEAST and, ahead of the event, Rayan Al-Rasheed, its director of operations and artist booking, highlighted the significance of hosting such acts in the Kingdom.
The high-energy set featured classic hits including “November Rain,” “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” and “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” with fans singing along throughout. (Supplied)
He said: “Saudi Arabia has become a key destination for global music acts. By hosting legendary artists like Guns N’ Roses we aim to elevate the Kingdom’s presence in the global music scene.”
The introduction of rock music to the Saudi musical landscape acknowledged a genre that had long had a strong presence in the country, he said, adding: “The popularity of bands like Metallica and Linkin Park shows that rock has deep roots here.”
Algerian-born Aomar Aït Khedache, 69, the ringleader, got the stiffest sentence, eight years imprisonment but five of those were suspended
Updated 24 May 2025
AP
PARIS: A Paris court this week found the ringleader and seven other people guilty in the 2016 armed robbery of Kim Kardashian, but did not impose any additional time behind bars for their roles in what the US celebrity described as “the most terrifying experience of my life."
The chief judge, David De Pas, said that the defendants' ages — six are in their 60s and 70s — and their health issues weighed on the court’s decision to impose sentences that he said “aren’t very severe.”
He said that the nine years between the robbery and the trial — long even by the standards of France’s famously deliberate legal system — were also taken into account in not imposing harsher sentences. The court acquitted two of the 10 defendants.
Algerian-born Aomar Aït Khedache, 69, the ringleader, got the stiffest sentence, eight years imprisonment but five of those were suspended.
Three others got seven years, five of them suspended. Three more got prison sentences ranging from five to three years, mostly or completely suspended, and an eighth person was found guilty on a weapons charge and fined.
With time already served in pretrial detention, none of those found guilty will go to prison and all walked out free. The trial was heard by a three-judge panel and six jurors.
Still, the chief judge said that Kardashian had been traumatized by the Oct. 2, 2016, jewel heist in her hotel during Fashion Week.
“You caused harm,” the judge said. “You caused fear.”
Kardashian, who wasn't present for the verdict, said in a statement issued afterward that she was “deeply grateful to the French authorities for pursuing justice in this case.”
“The crime was the most terrifying experience of my life, leaving a lasting impact on me and my family. While I’ll never forget what happened, I believe in the power of growth and accountability and pray for healing for all. I remain committed to advocating for justice, and promoting a fair legal system," said the celebrity who is working to become a lawyer.
Kneecap say Glastonbury slot at risk after terrorism charge
Group member scheduled to appear in court on June 18
Updated 23 May 2025
Arab News
DUBAI: The Irish rap group Kneecap said this week that efforts are ongoing to block their appearance at Glastonbury this summer, following a surprise show held just one day after one of their members was charged with a terrorism-related offence.
During their performance at London’s 100 Club on Thursday night, the trio said they were being made a “scapegoat” because they “spoke about the genocide (in Gaza)” at Coachella in April.
Group member Liam Og O Hannaidh was charged on Wednesday with a terrorism offence for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in London in November 2024. The rapper performs under the stage name Mo Chara and he is scheduled to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London on June 18.
The police force’s counter-terrorism command was made aware on April 22 of an online video from the event and then carried out an investigation. After that, the Crown Prosecution Service authorized the charge.
The group posted on social media and said in a statement: “We deny this ‘offence’ and will vehemently defend ourselves. This is political policing. This is a carnival of distraction.”
They added: “14,000 babies are about to die of starvation in Gaza, with food sent by the world sitting on the other side of a wall, and once again the British establishment is focused on us.
“This is a carnival of distraction. We are not the story, genocide is.”
Hours after the charge was filed, Kneecap announced a last-minute gig that reportedly sold out in 90 seconds, with 2,000 people on the waiting list.
Chara took to the stage at 9 p.m. with tape over his mouth in a symbolic protest. He suggested the timing of the charge was deliberate, saying it came just ahead of their scheduled Glastonbury appearance.
He said: “There’s a reason why what’s happened to me happened before Glastonbury. There’s a reason they’re trying to … stop me speaking at Glastonbury in front of the UK.”
Review: ‘Lilo and Stitch’ returns with heart, hula and a whole lot of charm
Homage to 2002 classic while vibrantly fresh
Maia Kealoha, 8, playing Lilo steals the show
Updated 23 May 2025
Dalal Awienat
DUBAI: The new “Lilo & Stitch” reboot honors the 2002 classic while giving it a vibrant look and feel for a new generation.
With stunning animation, amazing casting, and a deep sense of nostalgia, the film strikes an emotional chord from the opening frame.
With the original film being one of the most beloved Disney classics, there was a lot of pressure riding on this remake, especially considering the inconsistency in the latest Disney productions.
Visually, the animation is outstandingly expressive.
The Hawaiian landscapes practically glow and the redesigns of Stitch and his alien companions retain their mischievous charm, even with the updated disguises for Jumba Pleakley.
Although many were not happy with these changes, I personally loved the scene of them learning how to walk as humans.
The emotional core of the film, however, remains unchanged: the powerful bond between sisters Lilo and Nani.
Their dynamic is portrayed with warmth and honesty, balancing cheeky sibling rivalry moments with sincere, tender ones.
The comedic timing is spot-on throughout the movie but is not overdone to the point where it becomes cringey.
Casting is another major win.
The new ensemble delivers energy and heart, with the debuting young actress, Maia Kealoha, 8, playing Lilo stealing the show. She captures Lilo’s quirky spirit, fiery independence and emotional depth perfectly.
While longtime fans may note a few subtle updates to the characters and plot, the film stays true to its core message of family, belonging, and unconditional love.
The film really tugs at the heart strings and may even leave one teary-eyed at some points.
Reintroducing the beloved story to a new generation, “Lilo and Stitch” is a must-watch this summer.
