Billie Eilish, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Snoop Dogg Take the Stage at Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony
Billie Eilish, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Snoop Dogg headlined the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics on 11th August.
Their performances highlighted the torch handover to Los Angeles, which began with H.E.R. performing the ‘Mission: Impossible’ theme while Tom Cruise rappelled into the Stade de France in Paris.
A pre-recorded segment showed Cruise landing in the Hollywood Hills, marking the transition to the 2028 Los Angeles Games. He then handed the flag to Team USA athletes, who ultimately arrived at Venice Beach, where the Red Hot Chili Peppers opened the American portion of the ceremony with ‘Can’t Stop’.
Eilish followed with a performance of ‘Birds of a Feather’ from a lifeguard lookout on the beach, before Snoop Dogg, a notable presence at this year’s Olympics in Paris, took the stage with ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’.
He concluded his performance by joining forces with Dr. Dre for their classic hit ‘The Next Episode’.
All three acts were confirmed for the closing ceremony earlier in the day.
LA28 chairperson Casey Wasserman announced the performers, highlighting the significance of the moment as the Olympic flag was handed over from Paris to LA. Wasserman expressed excitement about showcasing local talent and praised Billie Eilish, H.E.R., the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Snoop Dogg for their contributions to the event, which aimed to give a glimpse of what’s to come in the 2028 Games.
The Paris closing ceremony began with performances by Phoenix, Air, Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig, and French electro-pop pioneer Kavinsky.
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The festivities kicked off with an impressive opening ceremony along the River Seine on 26th July, featuring Lady Gaga performing the French cabaret song ‘Mon truc en plumes’ and Gojira delivering the French Revolution song ‘Ah Ça Ira!’ with opera singer Marina Viotti.
Celine Dion also made her return to the stage for the first time in four years, performing Edith Piaf’s ‘L’Hymne A L’Amour’ in her first show since revealing her diagnosis with stiff person syndrome (SPS) in 2022.
–Silviya.Y
