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‘MDLBEAST’ Ignites the Riyadh Season

Elissa performing at MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM (Photo Credit: Saleh Al-Ghannam)
Elissa performing at MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM (Photo Credit: Saleh Al-Ghannam)
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‘MDLBEAST’ Ignites the Riyadh Season

Elissa performing at MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM (Photo Credit: Saleh Al-Ghannam)
Elissa performing at MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM (Photo Credit: Saleh Al-Ghannam)

Riyadh is set to feel the beat with the region’s biggest music festival, MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM, kickstarting on Thursday and featuring a line-up of more than 200 international and Arab performers. Crowds of fans will be attending the massive event despite the cold waves that will be hitting the Saudi capital.

Held in Banban in Riyadh, MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM will welcome festivalgoers and EDM fans to its stages: “BIGBEAST,” “DOWNBEAST,” “DANCEBEAST,” and “UNDERGROUNDBEAST.”

MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM will run from Dec. 16-19.

On the festival’s first day, several Arab artists like Elissa, Majid al-Muhandis, Mohamed Hamaki, Rashed Al-Majed performed alongside a number of EDM DJs.

Festival organizers said that visiting MDLBEAST SOUNDSTORM presents an opportunity to enjoy a unique experience that is not limited to music, but also includes a wide and varied list of artistic performances.

The festival is drawing in youth from Saudi Arabia and the region as it is set to feature leading international stars as well as local and regional talents.

Its eight stages witnessed the attendance of more than 45 artists from all over the world.

The international musical event recorded a public turnout that broke all expectations, logging more than 400,000 visitors within three days.

This is the second time that Riyadh hosts an MDLBEAST festival.

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Iceland Engulfed by Volcanic Cloud

Smoke and lava rise from a volcano eruption near Reykjanes, Iceland, 19 July 2025. EPA/JAKOB VEGERFORS
Smoke and lava rise from a volcano eruption near Reykjanes, Iceland, 19 July 2025. EPA/JAKOB VEGERFORS
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Iceland Engulfed by Volcanic Cloud

Smoke and lava rise from a volcano eruption near Reykjanes, Iceland, 19 July 2025. EPA/JAKOB VEGERFORS
Smoke and lava rise from a volcano eruption near Reykjanes, Iceland, 19 July 2025. EPA/JAKOB VEGERFORS

Iceland experts on Monday blamed a lack of wind for a volcanic cloud that has lingered over much of the island since an eruption last week.

Two craters of a volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula spewed out the sulphur-packed cloud on Wednesday, AFP reported.

The thick haze has left the capital Reykjavik and the southwest of the country in a pollution red alert, the highest level in Iceland's monitoring system.

Hylnur Arnason of the Icelandic Energy and Environment Agency said that volcanic eruptions normally cause air pollution, mainly from the sulphur dioxide that is emitted. The gas becomes sulfate in the atmosphere, creating a volcanic fog.

"It's completely misty in large parts of the country," said Arnason.

"Usually in Iceland we have lots of wind, which would carry the pollution away, but right now we don't," the expert added. "Now it's kind of just sitting over the whole country."

Arnason said the gas was not toxic but could be an "irritant".

The environment agency has recommended that vulnerable people should remain at home and take precautions against the pollution. The wind was expected to start strengthening again late Monday.