By: Gustavo Araújo, Giovanna Amorim, Helena Dias and Isabela Senra Barros (Grade 2)

Many moons ago, in 1985, the first edition of Rock in Rio, was released by the entrepreneur Roberto Medina. At first, it occurred randomly, until 2011. Since then, the festival happens every two years, rocking the whole city, except from 2021’s edition, which due to the pandemic, took place in 2022. It became one of the most anticipated musical festivals of the year. However, after 40 years, was it as spectacular as it was in the past?

This year, they have decided to include new different musical genres among them: funk, trap, country music and MPB, which was a big surprise for us. The festival that at first was mainly based on rock music, now has almost no rock at all with very few bands of the genre in its lineup. Instead of the classics anxiously expected by the fans, what we saw was lots of MCs who use so much auto tune that it feels like everyone has the same voice. And that is what has divided opinions so far.

Rock in Rio has been disappointing the Cariocas and tourists. The demand is lower than expected and, when you think about prices, the frustration is even bigger. Originally, 2024 was about celebrating the 40’ year anniversary of this huge rock festival. Now, Rock in Rio fans believe that the organizers have spoiled the experience of the celebration, by adding nonsense artists and removing the classics. The lack of coherence in the choice of artists and their stages, the lack of more representative female headliners, and the lack of real rock representation on World Stage bothered the public. Besides, classic bands such as Aerosmith and Bon Jovi have recently retired, together with the absence of great names like ACDC and Whitesnake. Is that the end of rock ‘n roll?!

Nevertheless, we have to highlight the positive aspects of the festival. The seven days of the event varied between strong heat and milder weather. Therefore, the hydration points of Rock in Rio were something worthwhile. No wonder, it was successful with many people taking the opportunity to fill in their bottles whenever they wanted.

One of the last days of the festival had only national attractions. Absences of Luan Santana, Ryan SP and Ludimilla embezzled the lineup that, even so, enchanted the public. The Brazil Day of Rock in Rio was marked by exciting duets and the debut of Sertanejo at the festival. That day satisfied the public with Brazilian culture and attracted the tourists. Unfortunately, it isn’t going to happen again, because of the problems backstage.

Another good point was the transportation. One of the maximums of the event has been the increasing focus on public transport, especially at the BRT Olympic terminal. Of course, queues and crowds were inevitable for the 100,000 people on each of the days. However, with many vehicles available, the public managed to leave reasonably quickly after the shows. In the event, there were also a lot of instagrammable spots that many influencers used to publicize the event and post to their followers.

Considering the positive and negative aspects, what is your opinion about the festival? Was it a success or a failure?

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