Shakira made history over the weekend when she played to over 400,000 people in Mexico City’s Zócalo – it was the largest gig ever to take place in the historic square.
The Zócalo is at the heart of the Latin American mega-city and tends to be a space reserved for national celebrations and political acts. Only a handful of A-list artists have played there down the years – people like Paul McCartney and Justin Beiber. Shakira has actually performed there before – back in 2007 – but her appearance back then drew merely an estimated 210,000.
Saturday’s gig was a different scale entirely. By 4pm, the square was at full capacity. Fans had already been queuing for hours, with some camped out in the square to secure a prime spot. The surrounding streets were closed well ahead of the 8pm start time and more than 20 screens were installed across the whole of the downtown area.
It was a hometown gig too, for the Colombian singer (she moved south after her 2023 split with Barcelona footballing icon Gerald Pique), which she addressed when she told the assembled multitude: “Today, I feel a mix of excitement, nostalgia, and gratitude. Today is our last day here in Mexico, my home.”
“This is a love and friendship story I have with Mexico that can’t be compared to anything. Thank you for all the excitement, all the joy you’ve made me feel. There’s definitely no better reunion than that of a little she-wolf with her Mexican pack here today at the Zócalo. Forever, we are one.”
Whilst she’s broken the record for Mexico City, she’s still some way short when it comes to the largest gigs in the world. That record is held jointly by Rod Stewart and Jean-Michel Jarre – the French electronic auteur played to an estimated audience of 3.5 million at Moscow State University in 1997, which equalled the record set by Stewart on the Cocacabana in 1994.
Free gigs at the Brazilian beach have regularly attracted crowds in their millions – Madonna, Lady Gaga and the Rolling Stones have all posted audiences of over 1.5 million.
Shakira plays a free gig there on May 2 – could that be the occasion she breaks Stewart and Jarre’s nearly 30-year-old record?
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