MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Brazilian police say they stopped an alleged bomb attack planned for a Lady Gaga concert in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday. City officials there said more than 2 million people attended - the biggest crowd for a female artist in history, according to organizers. Julia Carneiro reports from Rio.
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UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Singing) Oh, caught in a bad romance.
JULIA CARNEIRO: It was a historic night in Rio, dubbed Gaga Cabana, as Copacabana Beach was packed to the brim to see Lady Gaga. But after a night of collective bliss, Rio woke up with alarm.
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CARNEIRO: This video by Rio's civil police shows officers carrying out raids and making two arrests hours before the concert. The operation, Fake Monster, uncovered an alleged plan to attack concert goers using improvised explosives. Police said a group was recruiting participants on social media, promoting hate speech. Their main targets were LGBTQ+ fans. And the goal, to gain notoriety online.
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CARLOS OLIVEDA: (Non-English language spoken).
CARNEIRO: No bombs were found. The police inspector, Carlos Oliveda (ph) said the intent to harm was there. Police claim the suspects planned to disrupt the concert using improvised explosives and Molotov cocktails.
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LADY GAGA: (Singing) This is my...
CARNEIRO: The crowd that poured onto Copacabana for the free concert on Saturday was oblivious to the alleged threat. As was Lady Gaga herself. Her spokesperson said they weren't aware of any safety concerns before or during the show and learned about the plot at the same time as the public. Fans here in Rio were desperate to see Lady Gaga after she canceled the show in 2017 for medical reasons. English teacher Vitro Omeda (ph) was one of them.
VITRO OMEDA: Gaga, we love you. We've been waiting for many years. We're not devastated anymore. (Yelling) We love you.
CARNEIRO: The concert cost almost $17 million. Almost a third of that was public money. But for Rio, these mega concerts are a strategy to boost tourism and the city's image.
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GAGA: What's up, Brazil? Let's go. Come on.
CARNEIRO: Lady Gaga's show was bigger than Madonna's free concert in Rio last year. On social media, the megastar said that seeing the crowd of over two million people, her biggest ever, took her, quote, "breath away," and she would never forget this moment.
For NPR News, I'm Julia Carneiro in Rio. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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