| Rock in Rio was back! |
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| by Gina Modesto |
 When we think about music we are used to think about numbers. Nowadays, music is produced to make money. Those who are working in the music industry know what these words really mean. But sometimes dreams are possible. We have heard about the huge success of Live Aid and recently Live 8…
When we think about music we are used to think about numbers. Nowadays, music is produced to make money. Those who are working in the music industry know what these words really mean. But sometimes dreams are possible. We have heard about the huge success of Live Aid and recently Live 8…
Tears come to our eyes because we realize that we can do something good with music, we can change the whole world singing along with thousands of people. Rock in Rio started with this simple dream in the mind of Roberto Medina. He has been involved in the advertising field and events’ organization for 30 years. He believed that the country had all the necessary conditions and attributes to be part of the international show business circuit. He realized that while bringing international artists to Brazil, he could also generate employment and stimulate tourism.
 On the other hand, we can say that this festival had an important role in society: it could be a major opportunity to mobilise people to build a better world. In 1985 Brazil saw the first Rock in Rio. There were more than 1,38 million people! So much more than Roberto had imagined!
A great part of the festival’s revenues was allocated to social projects. The initiative of Rock in Rio For a Better World made possible for thousands of deprived youngsters of Rio de Janeiro to attend school and finish their studies.
Roberto was unstoppable… there was just one idea in his mind: more festivals! And after three successful festivals in Brazil, Roberto thought for the first time about taking Rock in Rio to Europe. Portugal was the perfect place to open the doors to the new City of Rock: we have the same language and we were the host country of Euro 2004. The first Rock in Rio Lisbon was in 2004.
 During the six days of festival, about 385,000 people attended this place. The international impact was very good: nearly 700 million people from 60 countries followed the event. The event created 10,000 direct jobs and 15,000 indirect jobs. The audience watched the performance of more than 70 artists from Portugal and abroad. Visitors had the possibility of enjoying more than 130 hours of performances on the several stages built in the new City of Rock.
This year Rock in Rio was back. The Bela Vista Park, in Lisbon, hosted the new edition of the world’s biggest music festival. On May, 26 and 27, as well as on June, 2, 3 and 4, all roads leaded people to the City of Rock. The Bela Vista Park, which has a surface of nearly 200,000 square meters, is one of the best places where the Rock in Rio festival took place. The sloping terrain, with trees all around, is perfect in what concerns the building plans
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