ARAB-American country singer Kareem Salama and his band will perform at a public concert at 7pm tonight on the first floor of the West Extension at Seef Mall.

The group is visiting Bahrain as part of a tour in the Middle East that also includes Egypt, Morocco, Jerusalem, Syria, Jordan and Kuwait.

The tour is part of a cultural programme by the US Department of State.

“I’d only previously been to Egypt and we all wanted to come to the region and learn more bout the place, market, what people think and also to get a feel for the people of the region,” Mr Salama told a Press conference in Fraser Suites, Seef, yesterday.

The band also visited Al Noor International School yesterday to have a talk with students about its music.

“We like going to schools because we can get to understand the children more and get a vibe from them. Obviously, we also want to share our music,” said the singer of Egyptian origin.

“Maybe share a little bit of country music and that aspect of American culture.”

Visiting the Middle East has always been part of the plan for the band to see the connection with the music they are creating and the people of the region, said band bass player and producer Dan Workman.

“It also gives us an opportunity to come here and show what we’re about,” he said.

Mr Salama already has two self-released albums and is working on his first mainstream album that should be coming out later this year.

The single from the forthcoming album is called Generous Peace, a literal translation of the singer’s name, and is based on a poem by Imam Al Shafe’i which urges responding to something bad with something good.

“I see this as a big problem in the world, if everyone seeks revenge it’s never gong to end,” said Mr Salama.

Kareem Salama and his band will be in Bahrain until Wednesday.

Today’s performance is open to the public free of charge.