Lady Gaga has made history after drawing an estimated 2.5 million people to her free gig on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The feat sees Gaga claim the record for the highest ever attended concert by a female artist. Fans flew in from all over the world for Saturday’s (3 May) show, which followed the CAA-repped superstar’s recent headlining performances at Coachella and sold-out stadium shows in Mexico City.

“Nothing could prepare me for the feeling I had during last night’s show – the absolute pride and joy I felt singing for the people of Brazil,” the singer wrote on Instagram. “The sight of the crowd during my opening songs took my breath away. Your heart shines so bright, your culture is so vibrant and special, I hope you know how grateful I am to have shared this historical moment with you.

“An estimated 2.5 million people came to see me sing, the biggest crowd for any woman in history. I wish I could share this feeling with the whole world.”

The performance, which took place on a custom stage and was broadcast live on Brazilian TV, marked Gaga’s first show in the country since 2012.

Rio Police have arrested two people in connection with an alleged plot to bomb the concert. The attack was said to have been planned by a group promoting hate speech against the LGBTQ+ community.

“The suspects were recruiting participants, including minors, to carry out coordinated attacks using improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails,” said a statement by police, who are working in collaboration with the justice ministry.

According to Reuters, the police investigation – dubbed Operation Fake Monster – was based on a report by the ministry’s Cyber Operations Lab following a tip-off. Authorities carried out more than a dozen search and seizure warrants across four states, with the alleged ringleader arrested in Rio Grande do Sul for the illegal possession of a firearm.

“There were no known safety concerns, nor any communication from the police or authorities to Lady Gaga regarding any potential risks”

A spokesperson for Lady Gaga tells The Hollywood Reporter they only learned of the alleged threat via media reports the morning after the gig.

“Prior to and during the show, there were no known safety concerns, nor any communication from the police or authorities to Lady Gaga regarding any potential risks,” adds the statement. “Her team worked closely with law enforcement throughout the planning and execution of the concert and all parties were confident in the safety measures in place.”

The 39-year-old followed in the footsteps of luminaries including Madonna, The Rolling Stones and Stevie Wonder in delivering the concert on Copacabana Beach, organised by Luiz Oscar Niemeyer, president and CEO of Bonus Track, who delivered the event in partnership with Live Nation.

Speaking to IQ last month, Niemeyer said that around 7,000 people would be involved in the production, from transport to police and production to concessions.

“All these forces come together to deliver something very special to the city of Rio, the fans, and the artist,” he said. “City officials and the police handle crowd management. The Marines take care of all the boats that come in and out. There’s a lot of negotiation with different departments but everyone is well-trained.”

Gaga’s concert was presented by Corona, with sponsorship from the government of the state of Rio de Janeiro and the City of Rio de Janeiro.

Rod Stewart reputedly performed the most-attended free concert of all time on Copacabana Beach on 31 December 1994, attracting an estimated 4.2 million attendees.

Next, Gaga will head to Singapore before kicking off The Mayhem Ball Tour across North America, Europe and Australia this summer and autumn.

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In a matter of weeks Luiz Oscar Niemeyer, the pioneering promoter behind some of the biggest concerts in Brazilian history, will look out over more than 1.5 million people on Copacabana Beach as Lady Gaga takes to the stage.

It will be the Brazilian veteran’s fourth mega-concert on Rio de Janeiro’s renowned beach – this time in partnership with Live Nation – and he has given IQ the exclusive inside track on what it takes to organise the iconic shows.

“Lady Gaga’s show is going to be a huge success,” he tells IQ. “We are confident that we know exactly what we’re doing. We had huge success with Madonna last year. We know all the variables, and we have a team that works very well together.”

As well as Madonna, The Rolling Stones and Stevie Wonder have also delivered behemoth concerts at the famed location thanks to Niemeyer, president and CEO of Bonus Track.

Despite the vast numbers of people expected at Gaga’s free-to-attend concert on 3 May, Niemeyer insists that his team and the local authorities are well-versed in handling such huge crowds.

“All these forces come together to deliver something very special to the city of Rio, the fans, and the artist”

“Rio has a lot of experience with these things,” he continues. “For the past two decades, the government has hosted New Year’s Eve concerts on the beach with millions of people.”

In fact, Rod Stewart performed the most-attended free concert of all time on Copacabana Beach on 31 December 1994, with an estimated 4.2 million attendees.

Niemeyer estimates that 7,000 people or so will be involved in staging Gaga’s concert, from transport to police and production to concessions.

“All these forces come together to deliver something very special to the city of Rio, the fans, and the artist,” he continues. “City officials and the police handle crowd management. The Marines take care of all the boats that come in and out. There’s a lot of negotiation with different departments but everyone is well-trained.”

The gig is open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis and ingress is funnelled through 17 entrances, according to Niemeyer. Fans are banned from camping on the beach the night before, meaning that all 1.6 million people will arrive on the day via the two nearby subway stations and other public transportation.

“People already know how to behave because this is not the first time they’ve come to something like this,” says the Bonus Track CEO and president. “They come to have fun but we haven’t had any incidents with the last four concerts.”

The biggest challenge with any Copacabana Beach concert, Niemeyer tells IQ, is raising the necessary sponsors to cover costs.

“It’s a very costly project and obviously, we have no income from the box office,” he says. “Plus, it has to be a first-class production, especially with the kinds of major artists we bring in.

“This business model is a completely different ball game to, say, a stadium show,” he continues. “But we’ve gained the credibility and trust of sponsors – they know that we can deliver and they can get a good return on investment. The concerts generate so much news, plus we broadcast it live throughout Brazil, with around 35 million people watching.”

Mexican beer brand Corona has signed on as the official sponsor of the next four Copacabana Beach concerts, helping to keep the concerts free for the people of Brazil.

“People who can’t usually afford to go to a concert can come and see the best acts in the world play for them for free”

“It’s very democratic; people who can’t usually afford to go to a concert can come and see the best acts in the world play for them for free. It’s a gift the city and our sponsors give to its people.”

Setup for Gaga’s gig commenced at the beginning of April and is expected to be completed three to four days before it’s scheduled to take place.

“May is a perfect time to do these concerts because the weather is very good,” he tells IQ. “We don’t have a plan B for weather, but we’ve never needed one.

“It’s also a good to hold these concerts before summer in North America and Europe so we can secure artists before their schedules pick up a bit.”

Niemeyer had the idea to hold free concerts on Copacabana Beach in the mid-2000s, having made a name for himself with Paul McCartney’s 1990 concert at the Maracanã, which attracted 184,000 people, and with the groundbreaking mega festival Hollywood Rock (1988–1993).

“The Rolling Stones show gave me the credibility, know-how and the assurance to continue doing these shows”

After successfully landing the idea with city officials, The Rolling Stones delivered a historic performance to over 1.5 million people on the beach in 2006.

“It became an iconic show and the biggest concert in their career,” he remembers. “This experience gave me the credibility, the know-how and the assurance to continue doing these shows. No other promoter really came in and did anything this big – I was the pioneer.”

After every Copacabana Beach concert he has held, Niemeyer has sworn it would be his last, but something keeps pulling him back.

“When it’s months before a show, and there are a lot of problems to solve, I say that it’ll be the last one,” he says. “Then it gets closer to the concert and I think: ‘This is fun’. Then the show finishes and I’m already thinking about the next one!”

In fact, Niemeyer tells IQ that his team are looking to stage three more concerts in the next three years. “We promoters have something in our blood,” he laughs.

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Lady Gaga is to perform a landmark free concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The 3 May show, which will mark Gaga’s first show in the country since 2012, will take place on a custom stage and be broadcast live on Brazilian TV.

Produced by promoter Bonus Track in partnership with Live Nation, the gig will be open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis for those arriving at Copacabana Beach near the Belmond Copacabana Palace Hotel on the day of the event.

The performance will also mark the launch of Todo Mundo no Rio – a new initiative created by Bonus Track to highlight the impact of entertainment in Rio de Janeiro. The platform will present large-scale cultural events over the next several years, starting with Gaga’s concert.

“I feel better than ever and am working so hard to make sure this show is one you will never forget”

“It’s a great honour to be asked to sing for Rio – for my whole career the fans in Brazil have been part of the lifeblood of the little monsters,” the 38-year-old American wrote on social media. “I’ve been dying to come perform for you for years and was heartbroken when I had to cancel [in 2017] because I was hospitalised. Your understanding that I needed that time to heal meant the world to me.

“I am now coming back and I feel better than ever and am working so hard to make sure this show is one you will never forget.”

Bonus Track previously organised Copacabana Beach shows by the Rolling Stones, whose famous 2006 gig pulled in a reputed 1.5 million fans, as well as last year’s concert by Madonna, who delivered the biggest concert of her career to an estimated 1.6 million people.

Gaga’s concert is presented by Corona, with sponsorship from the government of the state of Rio de Janeiro and the City of Rio de Janeiro.

The singer, who will also headline this year’s Coachella in the US on 11 & 18 April, last toured in 2022, when her The Chromatica Ball run generated $112.4 million at the box office from 20 stadium shows.

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Madonna delivered the biggest concert of her career on Saturday night (4 May) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

An estimated 1.6 million people attended the free show at Copacabana Beach, where the 65-year-old wrapped up her Celebration Tour.

The star performed for over two hours, delivering a 26-song setlist featuring guest appearances from two Brazilian musicians – Anitta joined for ‘Vogue’, while Pabllo Vittar guested on the tour debut of ‘Music’.

The concert, promoted by Bonus Track in partnership with Live Nation, was The Queen of Pop’s first gig in Brazil since 2012 and was the only South American date of the tour.

No tickets were required for the event, with fans granted entry on a first-come-first-serve basis on the day of the performance.

The star performed for over two hours, delivering a 26-song setlist featuring guest appearances

According to Reuters, many attendees had waited for hours or even days to secure a good spot, while others watched from boats or beachfront apartments. The show was also broadcast live on Brazilian free-to-air television network TV Globo.

The event was presented by financial services company Itaú, and sponsored by the City of Rio de Janeiro, the State Government of Rio de Janeiro and Heineken, with support from Deezer.

Before Saturday night, Madonna’s best-attended show was a performance at Parc de Sceaux in Paris, France on 1987’s Who’s That Girl World Tour, which drew 131,100 concertgoers.

Copacabana Beach is renowned for mega concerts by artists such as The Rolling Stones in 2006 and Rod Stewart, who broke the world record for the most-attended concert of all time when he performed there in front of 4.2 million people in 1994.

Madonna launched The Celebration Tour in London last October with the first of six sold-out nights at The O2. Its European leg grossed $77.5 million from 429,000 ticket sales, according to Billboard Boxscore.

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Madonna is set to wrap up her Celebration Tour in Brazil with potentially the biggest concert of her career.

The 65-year-old has reportedly lined up a “free and historic” show on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach. Visit Rio, the city’s official tourism office, also told Brazilians to “get ready” for the event, which is yet to be officially confirmed.

The New York Daily News reports the May gig, paid for by the Brazilian bank Itaú, would mark the pop icon’s 40 years in music, as well as the bank’s 100th anniversary.

“Yes, it’s true: Madonna is coming to Brazil for a mega show on May 4, which can potentially become the largest show of the Queen of Pop’s four-decade career,” declares Rio-based newspaper O Globo.

Free concerts on Copacabana Beach have routinely attracted in excess of one million people to concerts in the past. The Rolling Stones’ famous 2006 show pulled in an estimated 1.5m fans, while a 1994 New Year’s Eve gig headlined by Rod Stewart reputedly enticed 4.2m.

Madonna’s most well-attended show to date was in front of 131,100 people in Paris, France in 1987

Madonna’s most well-attended show to date was a performance at Parc de Sceaux in Paris, France on 1987’s Who’s That Girl World Tour, which drew 131,100 concertgoers.

The Celebration Tour, which commemorates the 40th anniversary of Madonna’s breakout single Holiday, does not currently include any stops in South America. The tour launched in London last October, with the European leg grossing $77.5 million from 429,000 ticket sales, according to Billboard Boxscore.

The North American leg, which was rescheduled after Madonna was hospitalised with a serious bacterial infection, began in December 2023 and is due to conclude in April with five nights at Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City.

In January, Madonna and tour promoter Live Nation said they would “vigorously” contest a lawsuit filed by two fans after the singer started a concert at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center more than two hours late.

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