More than 50,000 people turned up for the Isle of MTV Malta Special free music festival on Tuesday night... and the headline acts did not disappoint.
Thousands of music-lovers surged into the Granaries in Floriana as the sun set, eager to watch singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado and rappers Flo Rida and Will.i.am perform on the huge stage constructed opposite the brightly lit church.
Malta’s Eurovision entry, Kurt Calleja, made a surprise appearance to get the crowd going early, singing his competition song This Is The Night, followed by the energetic Dutch singer Eva Simons.
Eva’s flame-red Mohican never faltered as she bopped around the stage, belting out her track I Don’t Like You and other infectious dance-pop tunes, while giant TV screens suspended from the stage ceiling flashed clubbing graphics overhead.
As the day’s blazing heat cooled, Canadian pop star Nelly Furtado continued Eva’s technique with her hit song Maneater, followed by new single Big Hoops, while dancers swung giant hoops around the stage.
She then asked the screaming crowd if Malta had The Spirit Indestructible – the title of her next album – before getting everyone to sing along with her breakthrough hit I’m Like A Bird.
American rapper Flo Rida re-energised the packed Granaries into a screaming frenzy with his hits Whistle, In The Ayer and Low. Ever the charmer, he handed roses to selected female fans while performing Wild Ones, then tried to high-five most of the crowd as he ran the length of the square and back.
Finally, top of the bill was the multi-talented producer and TV personality Will.i.am, who performed at the Isle of MTV with his Black Eyed Peas band-mates in 2009.
Back as a solo artist, he filled the stage with dancers wearing 3D iPad helmets showing moving images of his face, echoing the hi-tech nature of his band’s live performances.
Opening with his global hit T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever), he later brought Eva Simons back on stage for dance ballad This Is Love, while circus performers and pyrotechnics went off around them.
Finishing the night by displaying his DJ skills to bring a taste of Paceville to Floriana, the 50,000-strong dancing crowd proved that the sixth Isle of MTV Malta was arguably the best one yet.