Madonna closed out her huge Celebration tour with a record-breaking concert in Brazil on Saturday – and she’s as thrilled as her fans.
The 65-year-old chart-topping singer turned Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach into a giant dancefloor when she took to the stage for the free show in front of an estimated 1,600,000 people.
This smashed her previous record attendance, numbering more than ten times the 130,000 fans who packed in to see her at Paris’ Parc des Sceaux in 1987.
During her set, Madonna told the crowd: ‘Here we are in the most beautiful place in the world. This place is magic.’
She was joined on stage by the likes of special guests including Diplo, Anitta, Pabllo Vittar and Bob the Drag Queen as she ran through her biggest hits including Like A Virgin, Hung Up and Live to Tell.
Reflecting on her achievement in the aftermath, the music icon shared drone footage emphasising the vast size of the crowds gathered to watch, along the beach and its bordering road.
She out on a free show on Copacabana beach, which attracted over 1,600,000 attendees (Picture: AP/Silvia Izquierdo)
‘This really happened……….Thank you Rio 🇧🇷💛 ………. Thank you @pabllovittar and @anitta,’ Madonna wrote in the caption on Instagram.
‘Words cannot express my gratitude! To everyone involved!!’ she added.
The star made sure to include all the songs and moments fan would expect of her.
In an echo of previous show and her famous kiss with singer Britney Spears at the 2003 MTV VMAs, the chart-topper locked lips with a dancer as she grabbed her passionately at one point.
Copacabana beach was taken over ad Madonna smashed her previous attendance record by over ten fold (Picture: Reuters)
The singer stunned with multiple outfit changes (Picture: Bakgrid)
Her huge show helped turn the beach into a dancefloor (Picture: Getty)
Madonna threw in her usual antics, including a fierce kiss with one of her dancers (Picture: Splash)
Madonna also donned a Brazil football shirt as part of multiple costume changes which also included a metallic catsuit and red and black lace negligee.
Pictures of concertgoers – who covered a huge swathe of the beach – showed them well and truly in the mood for some Mage.
Brazilian fans were well and truly ready for Madonna (Picture: Getty)
Many dressed up like the music icon (Picture: Getty)
Plenty were dressed up for the occasion with everything from homemade cone bras like the star’s iconic Jean Paul Gaultier bustier, as well as plenty of blonde wigs and leather corsets.
The city’s official tourism office, Visit Rio, had shared details prior to the concert, stating in a social media post: ‘It’s time to get ready! On May 4, the Queen of Pop arrives in Rio de Janeiro for a free and historic show at Copacabana Beach.
She dazzled onstage as she ran through hits including Hung Up and Like A Virgin (Picture: Reuters)
Madge also paid tribute to her hosts with her costumes (Picture: Backgrid)
‘Madonna ends The Celebration Tour here in the Marvelous City, celebrating 40 years of her career with a show that promises to be her biggest.’
They had previously announced the huge free gig in March.
The Vogue hitmaker took to Instagram on Sunday with a clip of her performing song Music with a troupe of dancer and drummers.
‘Blame it on Rio. Thank You Brazil!!’ she commented in the caption.
Her Instagram Stories also revealed shots of her rehearsing ahead of the show, as well as a glimpse at her customised football shirt, emblazoned with ‘Ciccone’, her surname, across the back.
At one point she wore a personalised Brazil football shirt (Picture: Backgrid)
The star wrapped up her Celebration tour with the epic show (Picture: EPA)
Madonna has performed in the city three times before, in 1993, 2008 and 2012, playing in front of 120,000 at her first gig there.
The free show followed previous similar performances, including from the Rolling Stones, who played for 1,500,000 attendees on the beach back in 2006.
Sir Rod Stewart broke the record for the largest free rock concert when a whopping 4,200,000 revellers watched him in action at Copacabana on New Year’s Eve in 1994.
