The iconic beach of Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro was filled with excited fans of Lady Gaga, hours before the free concert that the American pop diva will give Saturday night (03.05.2025) in that city in southeastern Brazil.
The Mayor’s Office of the ‘Wonderful City’ estimates an audience of 1.6 million people, which is expected to inject 100 million dollars into the local economy, almost 30% more than what was perceived by the show of singer Madonna, also free, in the same place a year ago.
Some fans of Lady Gaga, affectionately called “Little Monsters” (“small monsters”), came almost from dawn.
From the nearest subway, the following waves of followers were addressed by a succession of street vendors who offered fans or pareos with the image of their idol.
Then, they had to wait in a long line to pass police controls with metal detectors and have access to the beach, on a day of intense heat.
Wide security operation
Local authorities deployed more than 5,000 security agents, assisted by drones and cameras with facial recognition.
The Rio Government detailed in a note that 3,300 military police will patrol the streets of the region and another 1,500 civil police will reinforce the police stations, while 400 firefighters will be ready to attend possible emergencies.
The presence of the multifaceted artist will also generate an impact of 600 million reais (107 million dollars / 94 million euros) in the river economy, according to official estimates.
The objective of the vast security scheme, which will last until Sunday, is to avoid episodes of thefts and fights such as those that occurred last year during the Free Macroconciente of Madonna, also in Copacabana.
Saturday’s concert is part of the “Mayhem” promotion tour, the eighth album by Lady Gaga.
Single of the album as “Abracadabra” or “Die with a Smile”-raised with Bruno Mars and awarded a Grammy, the 14th of the 39-year-old singer and actress-triumph on the streaming platforms.
Fans came from dawn
“I arrived at 07h40 in the morning,” Alisha Duarte, 22, who tries to cool off with a fan decorated with the colors of the rainbow, symbol of the LGBTQ community, represented in Raudales in Copacabana, told AFP.
“At the moment it is calm. It will be more difficult at night, when you begin to fill with many people, but we will survive, Lady Gaga deserves it,” he added.
Alan Jones, a hairdresser from the state of Santa Catarina (south), tattooed an inspired blue skull on his left arm, according to him, in “Born This Way”, his preferred song of the American.
“It was the song that made me accept as I am,” he said, days before he turned 30.
On his side, Luan Messias, 28, traveled all night from Itanhaém, in the neighboring state of Sao Paulo, to attend the concert.
“I hope that Abracadabra sing, it is a very danceable song, like those of its beginning,” he said.
Lady Gaga did not appear in Brazil since 2012. He was scheduled to lead the billboard at the Rock In Rio Festival in 2017, but had to cancel at the last minute for health reasons.
JC (AFP, EFE, Reuters)
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