French Metal Band to Perform at Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

2024-07-25

French metal band Gojira. One French metal band has been tapped to perform at the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony, and they'll certainly stand out.

One French metal band has been tapped to perform at the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony, and they’ll certainly stand out – Author Charles Ken, Photo via Gabrielle Duplantier

The 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony takes place on Friday (July 26), and millions of people around the world will be watching the festivities. The musical lineup include a bevy of big-named performers, many of which are from France. As it turns out, one French metal band has been tapped to perform at the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony, and they’ll certainly stand out.

French Metal Band to Perform at 2024 Paris Olympics

While the Olympics doesn’t usually feature too many metal bands, that won’t be the case on Friday. The Paris Olympics opening ceremony should be a great one for metal fans, because famed French heavy metal band Gojira are reportedly going to be among the musical acts scheduled to perform.

Both French newspaper Le Parisien and Time Out state that Gojira will perform, and their set will feature a collaboration with opera singer Marina Viotti, who has a history of performing a plethora of genres, including metal. I’ve always thought metal and opera are a good fit, so I think this is a great choice. Now, Gorjira are known for having some growing in their music, but my guess is that Viotti will provide most of the vocals here. I’m not sure how well growling would go over with the mainstream Olympics crowd.

Metal fans watching the ceremony likely won’t see any other metal bands on the stage, though. Other performers slated for the event include Céline Dion, Lady Gaga and Aya Nakamura. By the way, none of these performers are officially confirmed, but it would be a shock if they weren’t performing. They’re all in Paris right now, so it seems like a sure thing at this point.

NBC’s Mike Tirico will host the ceremony for the fourth time, along with pop singer Kelly Clarkson and NFL great Peyton Manning. NBA legend LeBron James and U.S. Open tennis champion Coco Gauff are also set to bear the U.S. flag throughout the ceremony. Gauff, 20, marks the youngest athlete to ever carry the Stars and Stripes at an Olympic opening ceremony. James is part of USA Basketball, and I’m a big basketball fan, so I’m definitely hoping for a win from these guys.

If you want to watch the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony live, it airs at 1:30 p.m. ET Friday (July 26) on NBC, Peacock and NBC Olympics streaming platforms. For those in the U.S. who have to work during the day, the ceremony will re-air starting at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday on NBC.

Charles Ken
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