Alicia Keys has tipped Jay Z to be a huge hit at this summer's T in the Park festival. The R&B superstar says her hip hop pal, who faced controversy when he headlined Glastonbury two years ago, will have no problems when he heads to Balado in July.
Alicia, who sings on Jay-Z's Empire State Of Mind records, believes his headline slot will thrill the festival's 85,000 crowd.
She said: "Jay-Z is wonderful, so it's going to go great at T in the Park.
"Come on man, he has been in the business a long time and he has great songs and I know the people there are looking forward to him coming."
Jay-Z last headlined a festival in the UK at Glastonbury in 2008. His inclusion on the bill provoked a furious reaction from Noel Gallagher.
The former Oasis guitarist criticised the decision to go for a hip hop act from the US instead of a British guitar act.
Gallagher moaned: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it. If you start to break it then people aren't going to go.
"I'm sorry, but Jay-Z? No chance." Despite his objection, Jay-Z went on to prove a highlight at Britain's biggest festival.
Alicia, 29, whose mum Terri is part-Scottish and part-Italian-Irish, insists he will come all guns blazing to Scotland.
He joins a line-up that includes rapper Eminem, rockers Muse, Black Eyed Peas and Kasabian.
She insists the only person that would make the bill better is ex-Eurythmics star Annie Lennox.
"Annie Lennox is amazing," she said. "I love her so much. She is a beautiful human being and is so special. She is just phenomenal."
Alicia now wants to find fans who will accompany her to Africa for the Keep A Child Alive foundation, of which she is a global ambassador.
She said: "Keep A Child Alive is about providing the medicine for children and families who have AIDS and wouldn't be able to afford the medicine, especially in places like Africa, and we are moving into India.
"We are taking five people who text the word Alive to 90999 with me to Africa when I go so they can experience what I did."
Alicia has sold 30 million records and won 12 Grammy Awards since her 2001 debut album, Songs In A Minor. She plays Glasgow's SECC on May 23.
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