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Live Earth Rio Gets Reprieve
07/05/2007 10:50 AM, E! Online
Some welcome good news for Al Gore.
A day after his namesake son was busted for allegedly drinking, drugging and driving on the Fourth, a Brazilian judge has reversed herself and said the Rio de Janeiro installment of the global Live Earth concerts can take place as planned this Saturday.
At the behest of local authorities, Judge Maria Galhardo on Tuesday scuttled the show, citing concerns over security and crowd safety.
Brazilian prosecutor Denise Tarin had groused that the city's police force did not have enough officers for proper crowd control at the open-air gig. Officials had been expecting more than 700,000 fans to show at Copacabana Beach for the concert, the only one of the Live Earth galas set for South America and the only one not charging admission (the research scientist jam in Antarctica notwithstanding).
Tarin argued the police should instead focus their security resources on the upcoming Pan American Games, kicking off July 13.
But on Thursday, after an appeal by concert organizers and the local promoter, Mondo Entretenimento, Galhardo had a change of heart.
"We met with authorities and addressed their concerns, and the concert will continue as planned," said Live Earth spokeswoman Kristina Schake.
"The Military Police feels that they can guarantee the security of the show," Mondo said in a statement. "The Military Police will guarantee the security of all the sites in Rio with the same efficiency that is required for all events."
Earlier, Mondo said it was "working to guarantee the realization of this important international event," saying it had begun placing dozens of observation towers, platforms and police security cameras to monitor the concertgoers.
The promoter had already erected a giant beach stage in front of Rio's Copacabana Palace Hotel to host the Rio lineup, which boasts Lenny Kravitz, Macy Gray and Pharrell Williams, along with several popular local acts.
Despite Galhardo's 180, there's a chance the reprieve might be short-lived. Tarin's office might appeal the judge's decision.
Rio police know from riots. Last year, due to insufficient security and an overflow of fans—a mere 50,000—a mass riot broke out at a Rolling Stones concert held in the city. Nearly 600 concertgoers were caught up in the fracas, in which police fired rubber bullets and water cannons into the audience, which reacted in kind by hurling rocks, bricks and bottles at the cops.
Organized by Gore to combat global warming, the Live Earth concerts were set to take place on all seven continents Saturday—7/7/07—across a 24-hour period. Madonna, Kelly Clarkson, John Mayer, Kanye West, the Police, Keith Urban, Ludacris, James Blunt, Fall Out Boy, Black Eyed Peas, Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Snoop Dogg are among some of the A-list headliners.
Should the judge's ruling stand, Rio will avoid the fate of Istanbul, which had to scrap its Live Earth show due to a lack of preparation time and insufficient sponsorship.
With just two days left, even more artists are coming aboard: Yusuf Islam, formerly known as Cat Stevens, ride pimper extraordinaire Xzibit and electronica artist Kenna have joined the dockets of Hamburg, Tokyo and New York, respectively.
The concerts will kick off in Sydney and circle the globe with events following in Tokyo, Shanghai, Hamburg, Johannesburg, London and New York, as well as the Antarctica jam. The entire proceedings will be broadcast on air by Bravo and online by MSN.
However, for all the goodwill Gore & Co. hope to generate with their environmentally friendly shows, there's already some backlash.
A poll carried out by the British Website fool.co.uk asked Netizens to vote on which of the acts on the London lineup were the least green and therefore most hypocritical participants.
Just 674 people cast votes—and aspersions—with the majority of them voting wannabe Brit Madonna as the least green solo artist on the bill. She was followed by James Blunt and U.K. sensation Paolo Nutini. The Beastie Boys earned the dubious honor of least green band, followed by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Black Eyed Peas.
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