Will.i.am to star at Isle of MTV

Will.i.am will be one of the stars at this year's Isle of MTV concert at the beginning of summer, Culture Minister Mario de Marco announced this morning.

Will.I.Am is the lead singer of Black Eyed Peas and one of the world's most prominent music producers, winner of seven Grammy Awards.

He is due to release his latest solo CD Willpower in 2012.

The concert will be held on the Granaries in Floriana on June 26 and, and as in past editions, it will be free of charge. The date does not clash with Euro 2012 matches.

The rest of the line-up will be announced in the next few days.

Dr de Marco said this will be the sixth Isle of MTV concert in Malta. The past editions, he said, had improved Malta's tourism offer. Since the first concert in 2006, tourists under the age of 24 have increased from 151,000 to 286,000 last year.

He said Isle of MTV had helped changed the perception of Malta from a place where "your grandparents come" to a more varied destination.

Antonio Canto, Senior Vice-President of MTV said MTV was pleased to host Will.i.am and added that the Malta concert will be shown on every MTV channel across the world two weeks after the event.