Riyadh to Host Music Cities Convention and Awards 2024

The Saudi Music Commission logo
The Saudi Music Commission logo
TT

Riyadh to Host Music Cities Convention and Awards 2024

The Saudi Music Commission logo
The Saudi Music Commission logo

The Saudi Music Commission has said that after competing with several cities, Riyadh has won the bid to host the Music Cities Convention and Awards 2024, the world's largest series of conferences in the music sector.

Next year's Music Cities Convention and Awards will be held from November 14 to 16 at the Riyadh International Exhibition and Convention Center, the Commission announced Thursday.

It will feature a variety of topics in the music industry presented by over 100 experts from around the globe, along with an intensive educational program hosted by the Saudi Music Hub in Riyadh from October 3 to November 14.

It will also include several activities and events to enrich the music sector and provide a distinctive musical experience for its visitors and participants, the Commission said.

Riyadh's hosting of the event reflects the keenness of the Ministry of Culture to promote cultural exchange as one of its strategic objectives within the Saudi Vision 2030.



Japanese Woman who Was World's Oldest Person at 116 Has Died

(FILES) This handout file photo taken on May 23, 2024 and provided to AFP on August 22, 2024 by the Ashiya City government shows Japanese woman Tomiko Itooka as she celebrates her 116th birthday, in the city of Ashiya, Hyogo prefecture. (Photo by Handout / Courtesy of Ashiya City / AFP)
(FILES) This handout file photo taken on May 23, 2024 and provided to AFP on August 22, 2024 by the Ashiya City government shows Japanese woman Tomiko Itooka as she celebrates her 116th birthday, in the city of Ashiya, Hyogo prefecture. (Photo by Handout / Courtesy of Ashiya City / AFP)
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Japanese Woman who Was World's Oldest Person at 116 Has Died

(FILES) This handout file photo taken on May 23, 2024 and provided to AFP on August 22, 2024 by the Ashiya City government shows Japanese woman Tomiko Itooka as she celebrates her 116th birthday, in the city of Ashiya, Hyogo prefecture. (Photo by Handout / Courtesy of Ashiya City / AFP)
(FILES) This handout file photo taken on May 23, 2024 and provided to AFP on August 22, 2024 by the Ashiya City government shows Japanese woman Tomiko Itooka as she celebrates her 116th birthday, in the city of Ashiya, Hyogo prefecture. (Photo by Handout / Courtesy of Ashiya City / AFP)

Tomiko Itooka, a Japanese woman who was the world’s oldest person according to Guinness World Records, has died, an Ashiya city official said Saturday. She was 116.
Yoshitsugu Nagata, an official in charge of elderly policies, said Itooka died on Dec. 29 at a care home in Ashiya, Hyogo Prefecture, central Japan.
Itooka, who loved bananas and a yogurt-flavored Japanese drink called Calpis, was born on May 23, 1908. She became the oldest person last year following the death of 117-year-old Maria Branyas, according to the Gerontology Research Group.
When she was told she was at the top of the World Supercentenarian Rankings List, she simply replied, “Thank you.”
When Itooka celebrated her birthday last year, she received flowers, a cake and a card from the mayor, The Associated Press reported.
Born in Osaka, Itooka was a volleyball player in high school, and long had a reputation for a sprightly spirit, Nagata said. She climbed the 3,067-meter (10,062-foot) Mount Ontake twice.
She married at 20, and had two daughters and two sons, according to Guinness.
Itooka managed the office of her husband’s textile factory during World War II. She lived alone in Nara after her husband died in 1979.
She is survived by one son and one daughter, and five grandchildren. A funeral service was held with family and friends, according to Nagata.
According to the Gerontology Research Group, the world's oldest person is now 116-year-old Brazilian nun Inah Canabarro Lucas, who was born 16 days after Itooka.