You’ve probably seen the phrase, “Come to Brasil” in the comment section. It doesn’t even need to be about concerts or tours. An artist or musician can post a photo of their launch and you’ll still see the request.
Before heading to a farmers market on Sunday, I watched this 20-minute documentary about Brazilian fans. It follows Brazilian fans of Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Madonna, and Taylor Swift, while also looking at the historical, geographic, and economic reasons major artists often leave Brazil off their tours.
Brazil is huge and only a small number of cities can support the infrastructure required for the largest concerts. The country’s currency also makes already expensive tickets extraordinarily costly. And, sure, international artists have played festivals like Rock in Rio, many have gone years (or even decades) without bringing their full tour.
As a student of fandom, I know the power of Brazilian fans. As one contributor in the documentary shared, “At the end of the day, the artists that decide to take the leap will gain fans for life when they come to Brazil.” A few of my teammates live in Brazil and after they watched the documentary, Maria wrote in Slack: “we go insane in the best way because we know it's not common to have these personalities here. That's how loyal we are!”
1. Fans want reciprocity.
The documentary starts off with a Brazilian Beyoncé fan who quickly compares Beyoncé to an idol and a family member. But Beyoncé has not toured in Brazil since 2013. That waiting feels like a form of tension and it’s felt throughout the short feature. With this fandom comes a sense of disappointment but an immense amount of hope.
Netto, a Lady Gaga fan, shared that they had considered traveling outside Brazil to see one of Gaga’s tours. They organized the trip and got close to making the purchase but at the final moment they decided not to go.
“I’m not going to make this effort for someone who doesn’t make the same effort as I am and could make,” they said. Netto wanted to see Lady Gaga in Brazil with Brazilian fans.
Fans want to close the distance. Relationships cannot work forever when all the effort moves in one direction.
2. Devotion isn’t an excuse to give fans less care.
Throughout the short feature, we’re shown the physical and financial extremes fans endure to attend these shows.
The conditions at the Rio de Janeiro Eras Tour concert in November 2023 were extreme. After spending $1,800 USD on a ticket, a Brazilian Taylor Swift fan shared their experience camping out, watching fans faint from the heat, and having limited access to water. Tragically, a fan died after the concert due to heatstroke.
Brazilian Swiftie, wearing a Travel Kelce tshirt, talking about staying up to date on Taylor Swift
There is a version of fandom that loves and comes with an opportunity to sacrifice. Those stories get offered as proof of how much someone cares. But devotion also makes fans vulnerable. When someone cares deeply, they tolerate conditions an ordinary customer would not accept.
That should create more responsibility for the people building fan experiences, not less.
3. The fans are part of the performance.
Several fans in the documentary talk about the difference between seeing an artist abroad and seeing them in Brazil. One Madonna fan describes attending a Madonna concert in Miami and watching (to their horror) fellow audience members leave to use the bathroom or buy food. In Brazil, they said, fans hardly blink while Madonna is onstage. My teammate, Roberta, agreed. She told me, “It's so true!!! We can't even blink to much!”
how a true fan watches Madonna perform
Other performers and observers describe Brazilian audiences as unlike anything else. A crowd can bring years of waiting into a space. You are not just going to watch the artist…you are going to feel what happens when everyone around you has been waiting too.
4. The fans gather for one reason but stay for each other.
If you know me in real life or have read Huge Fan for awhile, I like to remind us all that “fan objects” (the thing, the brand, or a person that fans are fans of) are important, sure. But they aren’t what keep fandoms growing and going. If you recognize the 2-way street between you and your fans AND that there is a 2-way street between the fans themselves, the magic will flow.
The final scene of the documentary felt important.
Netto finally gets to see Lady Gaga perform in Brazil but leaves us with, “Lady Gaga is something that exists, but it exists very far from me. What I have are the people I’ve met along the way. When I’m all dressed up in an outfit I’ve made, when I’m celebrating with people, my favorite songs are playing, and the lights are flashing…that’s when my life makes sense.”
Fans are usually described by what they’re willing to do for an artist. How far they will travel, how long they will wait, how much they will spend, how loudly and consistently they will ask?
But “Come to Brasil” turns the question around.
What is the artist willing to do for them?
