Colombian superstar Shakira is set to perform a free concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday night, an event that local officials anticipate will attract approximately 2 million people to one of the world's most iconic waterfronts.
The performance follows similar shows by Madonna in 2024 and Lady Gaga last year, which also drew massive crowds dancing on the expansive sands. This concert is part of Shakira's "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran" ("Women No Longer Cry") world tour, named after her 2024 album.
In an interview with Brazil's TV Globo, the Latina pop star expressed her excitement, stating that she expects the Copacabana concert to be the biggest of her career. "For me it's a dream. I always dreamed of singing on this beach, because I think it's a magical place," she said in Portuguese, adding that she learned the language before English.
Brazil was one of the first countries where Shakira achieved success back in the 1990s, thanks to her charisma and the connection she forged with the Brazilian public, according to Felipe Maia, an ethnomusicologist pursuing a doctoral degree on popular music and digital technologies at Paris Nanterre University. Her historical success in Brazil "has a lot to do with the fact that she comes from Colombia, a country whose culture has many similarities with Brazil," Maia said, adding that Saturday's performance "crowns the relationship she has had with Brazil for a very long time."
By Saturday morning, crowds had begun gathering on the beach to secure good spots for the performance. Street vendors were selling food and drinks, as well as toilet paper, deodorant, and even bags of sand to stand on for a better view of the stage set up opposite the Copacabana Palace. DJs will start performing on the beach in the late afternoon, with Shakira's set scheduled for 9:45 p.m. local time, expected to last around two hours. After her performance, another DJ will take the stage—a new addition to keep the crowds entertained and facilitate an orderly exit, according to Rio officials.
These free concerts are part of an initiative led by Rio's City Hall to boost economic activity following Carnival and New Year's Eve festivities, as well as ahead of the month-long Saint John's Day celebrations in June. "For us, parties are serious business. Because parties generate jobs, income, development, and identity for the city," Rio Mayor Eduardo Cavaliere said on Wednesday as he presented the city's operational plan for the event. "Our investment in this show will give us a financial return 40 times greater," he added.
Shakira's performance could generate around 777 million reais (approximately $155 million), according to a study by Rio's City Hall and Riotur, the municipality's tourism company, driven by an influx of tourists and spending in restaurants, hotels, and shops. Data from City Hall shows that more tourists visited Rio in May during years with major shows—2024 and 2025—compared to 2023. In 2024, tourist numbers grew by 34.2% on May 1, just before the concerts, versus the previous year. In 2025, the increase was 90.5% compared to 2023. Ahead of Shakira's performance, Airbnb reported in an April 22 statement an increase in expected guests traveling from various parts of Brazil, Latin America, and even European capitals such as Paris and London.
