Jennifer Lopez pulls out of World Cup opening ceremony
Officials said the singer could not attend
Thursday's show because of unspecified
"production issues".
Lopez was due to perform alongside rapper
Pitbull and Brazilian singer Claudia Leitte,
with whom she has recorded the song We
Are One (Ole Ola).
Pitball and Leitte will go ahead and perform
accompanied by drummers Olodum.
"For production issues, Jennifer Lopez, one
of the artists of the official song We Are One,
will not be able to perform at the Fifa World
Cup opening ceremony," said a statement.
The 25-minute ceremony in Sao Paulo will
feature 600 artists, including acrobatic
gymnasts, trampolinists, martial arts-style
performers and stilt walkers.
Last week, Lopez - whose hits include On
The Floor and Jenny From The Block - said
she was "thrilled" to be given the chance to
perform at the opening ceremony.
"This is an amazing celebration of global
unity, competition and sport," she said.
Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull and Claudia Leitte
performed at the Billboard awards in May
Pitbull appeared not to be downhearted at
Lopez's withdrawal from the show.
"To be performing We Are One to the world,
especially in such a beautiful country like
Brazil, is going to be a lot of fun," he said in
a statement released by Fifa.
"But more than this, it is going to show the
world that music is the universal language."
Lopez also missed the January event where
Pitbull and Leitte unveiled plans for the song
alongside Fifa officials in Rio de Janeiro.
More than 60,000 people are expected to be
in Sao Paulo's Corinthians Arena to watch
the ceremony and kick-off match between
Brazil and Croatia.
Up to a billion people are expected to tune
in on TV worldwide
Lopez's cancellation comes amid protests
and strikes in Brazil, where some are
unhappy about the amount of money being
spent on the tournament.
The action has been on a smaller scale to the
mass protests last year, which delayed the
building of stadiums and key infrastructure
projects.
However, a poll by the Pew Research Centre
suggested that 61% of the public now felt
hosting the World Cup had been a bad idea,
as it diverted money from public services
such as healthcare.
Thursday's show because of unspecified
"production issues".
Lopez was due to perform alongside rapper
Pitbull and Brazilian singer Claudia Leitte,
with whom she has recorded the song We
Are One (Ole Ola).
Pitball and Leitte will go ahead and perform
accompanied by drummers Olodum.
"For production issues, Jennifer Lopez, one
of the artists of the official song We Are One,
will not be able to perform at the Fifa World
Cup opening ceremony," said a statement.
The 25-minute ceremony in Sao Paulo will
feature 600 artists, including acrobatic
gymnasts, trampolinists, martial arts-style
performers and stilt walkers.
Last week, Lopez - whose hits include On
The Floor and Jenny From The Block - said
she was "thrilled" to be given the chance to
perform at the opening ceremony.
"This is an amazing celebration of global
unity, competition and sport," she said.
Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull and Claudia Leitte
performed at the Billboard awards in May
Pitbull appeared not to be downhearted at
Lopez's withdrawal from the show.
"To be performing We Are One to the world,
especially in such a beautiful country like
Brazil, is going to be a lot of fun," he said in
a statement released by Fifa.
"But more than this, it is going to show the
world that music is the universal language."
Lopez also missed the January event where
Pitbull and Leitte unveiled plans for the song
alongside Fifa officials in Rio de Janeiro.
More than 60,000 people are expected to be
in Sao Paulo's Corinthians Arena to watch
the ceremony and kick-off match between
Brazil and Croatia.
Up to a billion people are expected to tune
in on TV worldwide
Lopez's cancellation comes amid protests
and strikes in Brazil, where some are
unhappy about the amount of money being
spent on the tournament.
The action has been on a smaller scale to the
mass protests last year, which delayed the
building of stadiums and key infrastructure
projects.
However, a poll by the Pew Research Centre
suggested that 61% of the public now felt
hosting the World Cup had been a bad idea,
as it diverted money from public services
such as healthcare.
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