Shakira played a free show on Copacabana beach last night to a crowd of 2 million. Rio's city government paid $4 million to put it on. The city is expecting around $155 million in return. The whole thing is a tourism program called "Todo Mundo no Rio," which means "Everyone in Rio." Every year through 2028, the city books one massive pop star for a free show on Copacabana. The city built it to fill hotels in May. That month sits between Rio's two peak tourism windows, and bookings would otherwise dip. The first two years proved the model. Madonna's 2024 show pulled in 1.6 million people, and the local economy got about $60 million out of it. Lady Gaga came in 2025, drew 2.1 million, and brought in $109 million. Both weekends, the city's hotels were packed. Shakira is on track to top them both. Rio's economic office is projecting around $155 million in spending at hotels, restaurants, taxis, and shops, plus another $250 million worth of news coverage worldwide that the city would otherwise have to buy through ads. About 310,000 of last night's crowd flew or drove in from outside Rio. Airline bookings to the city were up 80% the week of the show compared to the same week in 2024. Hotels were full. When the previous mayor was asked whether spending public money on a free Lady Gaga show was a good idea, he didn't dance around it. Yes, he said. He'd done the same for Madonna. The reason was simple: the shows fill the hotels and the restaurants, and the tax money rolls in. 2 million people is about the population of Paris. They were all standing on a 4-kilometer (2.5-mile) stretch of beach. The setup ran 16 video and audio towers down the coast so the back rows could still see and hear. The city is generating roughly $40 of economic activity for every $1 of public money it puts in. They're doing it again in 2027.
