Shakira Fans Turn Copacabana Beach Into A Dance Floor As Estimated Two Million Watch Free Concert

Colombian euphony icon Shakira captivated an estimated 2 cardinal fans connected Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Beach connected Saturday night, delivering a free performance that transformed 1 of nan world's astir celebrated waterfronts into a colossal creation floor. The monumental capacity echoes akin free spectacles by Madonna earlier successful 2024 and Lady Gaga past year, some of which besides drew immense crowds to nan sprawling sands.

Shakira's show was a cardinal extremity connected her "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran" ("Women No Longer Cry") world tour, named aft her critically acclaimed 2024 album. Kicking disconnected astir 11 pm, much than an hr aft its scheduled start, nan megastar was met pinch deafening screams and fervent applause. Overhead, skywriting drones illuminated nan nighttime sky, pronunciation retired "I emotion you Brazil" successful Portuguese. During nan event, Shakira fondly reminisced astir her first sojourn to nan South American federation immoderate 3 decades prior.

"I arrived present erstwhile I was 18 years old, dreaming astir singing for you," Shakira told nan crowd soon aft coming connected stage. "And now look astatine this. Life is magical."

The much-loved popular prima sang instrumentality favorites specified arsenic "Hips Don't Lie," "La Tortura" and "La Bicicleta." She ended pinch "BZRP Music Sessions 53/66," which followed her separation from Spanish shot subordinate Gerard Piqué.

She besides took nan clip to observe women's resilience during nan show. "Us women, each clip we autumn we get up a small wiser," she said.

Rio Mayor Eduardo Cavaliere said connected X that 2 cardinal group attended nan performance. "The She-Wolf made history successful Rio," he posted, referring to Shakira's 2009 hit.

When Shakira first performed successful Brazil successful nan 1990s, she established an astonishing relationship pinch nan Brazilian public, according to Felipe Maia, an ethnomusicologist pursuing a doctoral grade successful celebrated euphony and integer technologies astatine Paris Nanterre University.

That occurrence successful Brazil "has a batch to do pinch nan truth that she comes from Colombia, a state whose civilization has galore similarities pinch Brazil," Maia said, adding that Saturday's capacity "crowns nan narration she has had pinch Brazil for a very agelong time."

Erica Monteiro, a 38-year-old accountant, said she has listened to Shakira since childhood.

"For maine she represents nan spot of our Latino community," Monteiro said up of nan concert. "We're treated arsenic if we were inferior but successful truth we person overmuch much strength."

Heading location aft Saturday's show, Hellem Souza da Silva said Shakira's performance, for illustration Bad Bunny's concerts successful Sao Paulo successful February, helped consolidate Brazil's Latino identity.

These artists "are making it clear that Brazil, Puerto Rico, Colombia and different countries are portion of Latin America. And that America is not nan United States," she said.

Crowds started piling onto nan formation Saturday greeting to nab a bully spot for nan show. Street vendors sold saccharine maize and different Brazilian snacks, bottled h2o and caipirinhas, nan celebrated Brazilian cocktail, but besides toilet paper, deodorant and moreover bags of soil for concertgoers to guidelines connected to get a amended position of nan shape group up other Copacabana Palace, a historical luxury hotel.

Street vendor Simone Paula da Cunha arrived connected nan formation connected Friday evening, hoping to waste each nan brew and h2o bottles she had bought up of nan show and make astir $100 successful all.

Despite being tired, da Cunha was excited astatine nan imaginable of seeing Shakira live. "I retrieve her from erstwhile she still had achromatic hair," she said. "I'm a immense instrumentality of hers."

The free concerts are portion of City Hall's effort to boost economical activity aft Carnival and New Year's Eve festivities and earlier nan monthlong Saint John's Day celebrations successful June.

"For us, parties are superior business. Because parties make jobs, income, development, and personality for nan city," Cavaliere, nan mayor, said connected Wednesday arsenic he presented nan city's operational scheme for nan event. "Our finance successful this show will springiness america a financial return 40 times greater," he said.

Shakira's capacity could make astir 777 cardinal reais (around $155 million), according to a study by City Hall and Riotur, nan municipality's tourism company, acknowledgment to nan influx of visitors and rate spent successful restaurants, hotels and shops.

More visitors headed to Rio successful nan period of May successful nan years pinch shows — 2024 and 2025 — compared to 2023, according to City Hall data. In 2024, nan maturation was 34.2% connected May 1, conscionable up of nan concerts, compared to nan erstwhile year. In 2025, nan summation was 90.5% compared to 2023.

Ahead of Shakira's performance, Airbnb said successful an April 22 connection that it was seeing an summation successful guests expected to recreation from different parts of Brazil, Latin America and moreover European capitals specified arsenic Paris and London.

Wanderson Andrade, a 30-year-old architect, said he flew successful particularly for nan show from nan metropolis of Goiana successful cardinal Brazil connected Saturday and planned to alert backmost nan pursuing day.

"I tried to get tickets to spot her successful Brazil past twelvemonth but I didn't succeed," said Andrade, whose first tattoo is simply a wolf successful grant of Shakira. "Today is simply a dream travel true."