Streaming platform Spotify has confirmed a surge in listens of metal band Gojira and the track “L’hymne à l’amour”, both of which featured in the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on Friday evening.
According to the figures, French metal band Gojira experienced a 106% increase in streams across France and an overall global rise of 80% on Spotify, the world’s leader in music streaming platforms.
Gojira created a stir when they joined forces with Franco-Swiss opera singer Marina Viotti to perform the French revolutionary song “Ah! Ca ira” at Friday’s opening ceremony in Paris.
This sequence was at the beginning of the nearly 4-hour ceremony that weaved along a 6 km stretch of the Seine River, passing by Parisian landmarks, the first show of its kind outside of a stadium.
🚨BREAKING NEWS🚨
This year Gojira became the first metal band to perform at the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics. This is incredibly cool and badass. France will now forever be labeled as cool and badass. pic.twitter.com/vJtH6wEOYv — vx-underground (@vxunderground) July 26, 2024
Later in the evening, the celebrated Québécois singer Céline Dion (56) impressed spectators with a rendition of Edith Piaf’s classic “L’hymne à l’amour” – sung from the balcony of the Eiffel Tower. The song saw an impressive 426% increase in France and a whopping 497% boost worldwide.
Dion had not performed live for four years due to her struggle with Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS), a neurological condition with no known cure. This debilitating illness, characterised by paralysing attacks, has until now compelled Dion to cancel tours and her famed Las Vegas residency shows.
Dressed in a sparkling white gown, accompanied by a pianist, a tearful Dion’s performance is still making waves across social media today.
Céline Dion has a rare autoimmune neurological disorder that causes muscle stiffness called stiff person syndrome. There is no treatment and she has not performed in 4 years. She just opened the Olympics with this stunning performance. Magnifique. pic.twitter.com/NAkgAJ6wIZ
— Dr. Lucky Tran (@luckytran) July 26, 2024
