Lady Gaga held a free concert at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday, May 3, performing tracks from her massive catalog of hits for an estimated crowd of 2.5 million people.
The show, which marked the pop superstar’s first concert in Brazil in over a decade, broke the record for the highest-attended concert by a female artist in history — a record previously held by Madonna — concert organizers told Variety.
“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 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,” Gaga, 39, wrote in an Instagram post on Sunday, May 4, celebrating the event.
“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 — I know I can’t, but I can say this — if you lose your way, you can find your way back if you believe in yourself and work hard. You can give yourself dignity by rehearsing your passion and your craft, pushing yourself to new heights — you can lift yourself up even if it takes some time,” she continued.
Added Gaga: “Thank you Rio for waiting for me to come back. Thank you little monsters all over the world. I love you. I will never forget this moment. Paws up little monsters. Obrigada. Love, Mother Monster.”
Gaga appeared to acknowledge the historic moment during her concert as well, telling the Copacabana Beach crowd, “Tonight, we’re making history,” per Variety. “Thank you for making history with me,” she added to fans. “The people of Brazil are the reason why I can shine.”
Elsewhere during the evening, the star took another emotional moment to celebrate the crowd. “Your freedom is so vast … your joy, your love, your spirit. May it be heard around the world tonight! 2.5 million people,” she told fans, per concert footage shared on X.
The musician kicked off her historic show with 2011 track “Bloody Mary,” and went on to perform a combination of her classics and songs off of her latest album, Mayhem.
Fans belted out the lyrics to “Poker Face,” “Paparazzi,” “Shallow” and more, their voices echoing loudly throughout the area, concert footage captured on social media shows.
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Though the show ultimately went on as planned, Brazilian police later revealed that they thwarted a bomb attack intended to target the crowd at the free show, according to the BBC.
Police said they arrested the person responsible for the attack, which was planned by a group that had been spreading hate speech against children and the LGBTQ+ community, the outlet reported.
Before Gaga’s massive May 3 show, the record for highest-attended concert by a female artist was held by Madonna. The pop star, 66, nabbed the title in May 2024 when, for the final show of her Celebration Tour, she held a free concert at Copacabana Beach that drew a crowd of 1.6 million fans.
Madonna’s concert was also the first by a female artist to exceed a crowd of 1 million, per Guinness World Records.
The overall record holder for biggest concert crowd is still held by Rod Stewart, according to Guinness. The “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?” singer also earned the honor at Copacabana Beach, drawing a crowd of at least 3.5 million for a free New Year’s Eve at the Rio beach in 1994.
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