More than 2 million fans attend free Lady Gaga concert in Rio de Janeiro

Lady Gaga gave a free concert Saturday night in front of more than 2 million fans, who poured onto Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro for the biggest show of her career.

“Tonight, we’re making history,” Lady Gage told a screaming crowd. “Thank you for making history with me.”

The Mother Monster, as she is known, kicked off the show just after 10 p.m. local time with her 2011 song “Bloody Mary.” Cries of joy rose from the tightly-packed fans who sang and danced shoulder-to-shoulder on the vast stretch of sand.

Concert organizers said 2.1 million people attended the show, which was funded by the city of Rio in an effort to revitalize the economy. In a recent report, Rio’s City Hall said the show should bring in at least 600 million reais, or roughly $106 million.

For Gaga, the performance was also an opportunity to promote her upcoming “Mayhem Ball” tour, featuring songs from her latest record MAYHEM. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 when it was released in early March and includes new hits like “Abracadabra.”

Lady Gaga also performed a number of older classics at her free show Saturday, including “Poker Face” and “Alejandro,” switching between an array of dresses including one with the colors of the Brazilian flag.

Some fans — many of them young — arrived on the beach at the crack of dawn to secure a good spot, armed with snacks and drinks. They spent the day under a blazing sun, while others perched in trees, determined to get a panoramic view.

“Today is the best day of my life,” said Manoela Dobes, a 27-year-old designer who was wearing a dress plastered with a photograph from when she met Lady Gaga in the United States in 2019. “It’s surreal to be here.”

Madonna also turned Copacabana Beach into a massive dance floor last year.

The large-scale performances are part of an effort led by City Hall to boost economic activity after Carnival and New Years’ Eve festivities and the upcoming month-long Saint John’s Day celebrations in June.

“It brings activity to the city during what was previously considered the low season — filling hotels and increasing spending in bars, restaurants, and retail, generating jobs and income for the population,” said Osmar Lima, the city’s secretary of economic development, in a statement released by Rio City Hall’s tourism department last month.

Similar concerts are scheduled to take place every year in May at least until 2028.

Lady Gaga arrived in Rio in the early hours of Tuesday. The city has been alive with Gaga-mania since, as it geared up to welcome the pop star for her first show in the country since 2012. Rio’s metro employees danced to Lady Gaga’s 2008 hit song “LoveGame” and gave instructions for Saturday in a video. A free exhibition celebrating her career sold out.

While the vast majority of attendees were from Rio, the event also attracted Brazilians from across the country and international visitors.

More than 500,000 tourists poured into the city in the days leading up to the show, more than double the initial forecast, according to data from the local bus station and Tom Jobim airport, Rio’s City Hall said in a statement on Friday.

Ingrid Serrano, a 30-year-old engineer, traveled from Colombia to Brazil to attend the show.

“I’ve been a 100% fan of Lady Gaga my whole life,” said Serrano, who was wearing a T-shirt featuring Lady Gaga’s outlandish costumes over the years.

For her, the mega-star represents “total freedom of expression — being who one wants without shame.”

Rio officials have a history of organizing huge concerts on Copacabana Beach. Madonna’s show drew an estimated 1.6 million fans last year, while 4 million people flooded onto the beach for a 1994 New Year’s Eve show by Rod Stewart in 1994. According to Guinness World Records, that was the biggest free rock concert in history.

To ensure fans could hear the songs, sixteen sound towers were spread along the beach.

Rio state’s security plan included 3,300 members of the military, 1,500 police officers and 400 firefighters.

Among those present were Lady Gaga admirers who remember their disappointment in 2017, when the artist canceled a performance scheduled in Rio at the last minute due to health issues.

Ricardo Filho, who has been a fan since childhood, said it was worth the wait.

“She’s the best artist in the world,” the 25-year-old said, as chants of “Gaga, I love you” in Portuguese rose from the crowd behind him.