Latin America in the sights of music’s biggest stars

PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil - There was a time when Latin American fans could only follow their favorite artists on radio, in magazines, or on TV. Never before in the history of pop and rock music have so many big-name acts scheduled concerts in Latin America than right now.

Superstar acts Coldplay, Metallica and Guns N' Roses, The Cranberries, Franz Ferdinand and Beyoncé already have announced they will include tour dates in Latin American countries.

And the list doesn't stop there. U2's sensational 360° tour is expected to come to South America, but Bono and Co. haven't confirmed they are coming - and neither have former Beatle Paul McCartney, the "King of Blues" B.B. King, singer Nelly Furtado and punk rock band Green Day.

"All of the big artists who are on tour look at Latin America today," says Alexander Lopes, owner of Opinião Produtora, one of the leading promoters in southern Brazil, which has brought in Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton concerts in previous years.

Metallica, the first band to have five consecutive releases atop the Billboard chart, is planning a tour of 16 concerts that will stop in Peru, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama and Venezuela.

In Brazil, Metallica's first concert was in Porto Alegre on Jan. 28. Then, their Death Magnetic tour headed north to Morumbi Stadium, in São Paulo.

The biggest bands have realized that the Latin American market can be an excellent alternative this time of year because of the weather. While the Northern Hemisphere is covered in snow that hinders outdoor concerts, Brazil and Argentina - already great venues for outdoor concerts - are in the height of summer.

In addition, local promoters have invested heavily in venues, stages and equipment needed to produce great concerts.

Nelly Furtado is expected to tour Latin America this year.

"In 1999, when Metallica played for the first time in Porto Alegre, they brought an entire stage," Lopes says. "Not now - we have a ready-made stage in excellent condition for the band."

The economic growth of some Latin American countries - many of which feature an increasing population of people with expendable income - has lured acts south of the equator.

Furthermore, the devaluation of the American dollar against the Brazilian real and the Chilean peso enables fans in those countries to afford seats to see their favorite artists.

The shift has caused promoters to draw a new map of America to chart the music industry's biggest tours, which can begin in Mexico, and travel south through Central America, and then to Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Chile, Argentina before concluding in Brazil.

Or, they can follow the opposite route, starting in Brazil or Argentina and ending in Mexico.

While the artists make good money in the emerging American markets, Latin American fans celebrate their idols' visits just has much as the ones in the bands' native countries.

Porto Alegre, with a population of 1.5 million, will host four big concerts in the next two months: Metallica, The Cranberries, Guns N' Roses and Franz Ferdinand.

And each act likely will play before a capacity crowd - something unthinkable a decade ago.

"Ten years ago, concerts that came here were big happenings in the city," André Pase, a journalism teacher in Porto Alegre, says. "Nowadays, this is becoming commonplace."

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