The US rapper will perform at the Al Dana Amphitheatre – the country’s first purpose-built live music venue – on 10 December

By James Hanley on 02 Aug 2024

Eminem has added a Bahrain show to his run of Middle East dates this December.

Tickets are already sold out for the Detroit rapper’s 10 December concert at the Al Dana Amphitheatre – the country’s first purpose-built live music venue, which features a 10,000-capacity bowl and 1,500-cap club space.

The ASM Global-run venue in the Sakhir desert also has upcoming gigs with Calvin Harris (25 October), Gary Clark Jr (26 October) and SZA (20 November).

Backed by Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the crown prince and prime minister, the amphitheatre opened in 2021 and was created to give the kingdom a globally recognised world-class venue and to form a regular stop on the local, regional, and international circuit. It has already welcomed the likes of Ed Sheeran, 50 Cent, Westlife, Halsey, Backstreet Boys and Imagine Dragons.

“During the summer, we’ve started putting acts through the air-conditioned Exhibition World Bahrain [also ASM Global- run],” said Al Dana CEO, Damian Bush, speaking in IQ‘s Global Arena Guide 2024. “What we’re trying to do is work with all the other venues and operators across the country to make Bahrain an important stop.

“What we offer is familiarity for the Western acts because this is a liberal country with a liberal view towards entertainment”

“What we offer is familiarity for the Western acts because this is a liberal country with a liberal view towards entertainment. Bahrain is very accessible.

“What we’re interested in is bringing in the right type of music, the right type of genre, and we don’t rule out anything. It’s about what we think is going to sell, what’s going to be popular, what’s going to be diverse.”

It was recently confirmed that Eminem will make his live debut in Saudi Arabia as one of the headliners for this year’s Soundstorm by MDLBeast festival. The 51-year-old will top the bill alongside Thirty Seconds to Mars and Muse for the fifth edition of Soundstorm, which returns to the capital Riyadh from 12-14 December.

He will also headline the Yasalam After-Race Concert Series as part of the Abu Dhabi Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend on 7 December, having previously performed in the UAE capital in 2019.