The Rolling Stones rocked the night away on Saturday on fabled Copacabana beach with more than 1.2 million fans in one of the biggest concerts the world has ever seen.
Mick Jagger, 62, shouted "Hello Brazil" in Portuguese to a huge roar, and the supergroup worked up a sweat delivering more than 20 of their biggest hits, including Jumpin' Jack Flash, Satisfaction and Honky Tonk Women.
Fans came from across South America for the extraordinary event which cost US$4.6 million to put on.
PHOTO: AP
Concert-goers did not pay, but the Stones still took a paycheck as the Rio city authorities and two mobile telephone companies picked up the tab.
Thousands watched and sang along from windows and balconies of hotels and buildings near the beach and from boats massed offshore for the opening concert in South America on the Rolling Stones' latest world tour.
Jagger and band members Keith Richard, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood, and their accompanying musicians, played on a giant stage, 60m long and 24m high and decked out in a palm motif.
A special walkway was set up to take the group from the Hotel Copacabana Palace, where they were staying, to the stage.
There were more than 100 tonnes of sound and light equipment for the spectacle, with giant speakers and screens set up along the beach.
Several thousand police were on duty and the fire department estimated there were more than 1.2 million people. No serious incidents were reported.
Opening with It's Only Rock and Roll, the show also included other favorites such as Sympathy for the Devil and four new songs from their latest release A Bigger Bang.
People began claiming places for the concert early on Saturday morning, greeted by scorching sunshine after several days of rain.
Fans who came from Argentina chanted "Let's go Stones" as the beach filled with children, pensioners who remember the Stones from their early days and European and North American tourists.
"Today there's only one language: rock," said Luiz, a student fan.
Hundreds of hawkers peddled drinks, binoculars, T-shirts and Stones posters and memorabilia.
"Buy some and you won't regret it. It's the only and final chance there will be a show like this," said t-shirt vendor Valdir, who started work at dawn.
‘CROWN JEWEL’: Washington ‘can delay and deter’ Chinese President Xi Jinping’s plans for Taiwan, but it is ‘a very delicate situation there,’ the secretary of state said US President Donald Trump is opposed to any change to Taiwan’s “status quo” by force or extortion and would maintain that policy, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Hugh Hewitt Show host on Wednesday. The US’ policy is to maintain Taiwan’s “status quo” and to oppose any changes in the situation by force or extortion, Rubio said. Hewitt asked Rubio about the significance of Trump earlier this month speaking with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) at the White House, a meeting that Hewitt described as a “big deal.” Asked whether the meeting was an indication of the
‘RELATIVELY STRONG LANGUAGE’: An expert said the state department has not softened its language on China and was ‘probably a little more Taiwan supportive’ China’s latest drills near Taiwan on Monday were “brazen and irresponsible threats,” a US Department of State spokesperson said on Tuesday, while reiterating Washington’s decades-long support of Taipei. “China cannot credibly claim to be a ‘force for stability in a turbulent world’ while issuing brazen and irresponsible threats toward Taiwan,” the unnamed spokesperson said in an e-mailed response to media queries. Washington’s enduring commitment to Taiwan will continue as it has for 45 years and the US “will continue to support Taiwan in the face of China’s military, economic, informational and diplomatic pressure campaign,” the e-mail said. “Alongside our international partners, we firmly
KAOHSIUNG CEREMONY: The contract chipmaker is planning to build 5 fabs in the southern city to gradually expand its 2-nanometer chip capacity Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, yesterday confirmed that it plans to hold a ceremony on March 31 to unveil a capacity expansion plan for its most advanced 2-nanometer chips in Kaohsiung, demonstrating its commitment to further investment at home. The ceremony is to be hosted by TSMC cochief operating officer Y.P. Chyn (秦永沛). It did not disclose whether Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and high-ranking government officials would attend the ceremony. More details are to be released next week, it said. The chipmaker’s latest move came after its announcement earlier this month of an additional US$100 billion
Authorities yesterday elaborated on the rules governing Employment Gold Cards after a US cardholder was barred from entering Taiwan for six years after working without a permit during a 2023 visit. American YouTuber LeLe Farley was barred after already being approved for an Employment Gold Card, he said in a video published on his channel on Saturday. Farley, who has more than 420,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, was approved for his Gold Card last month, but was told at a check-in counter at the Los Angeles International Airport that he could not enter Taiwan. That was because he previously participated in two