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.
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.
