Andrea Bocelli Headlines Grace for the World Concert
Co-directed by Bocelli and Pharrell Williams, the first-ever public concert in The Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square featured a drone show.
Andrea Bocelli has recently performed a pair of historic concerts.
On Saturday, September 6, Bocelli and his son Matteo performed a duet of “Dolce è Sentire” for the new Pope Leo XIV in celebration of the inauguration of the Laudato Si’ Village, a special space dedicated to “education, ecology and fraternity.”
On Saturday, September 13, Bocelli performed again for the Pope at the Vatican to mark the closing of the third World Meeting on Human Fraternity and the celebration of the 2025 Jubilee Year. Co-directed by Pharrell Williams and Andrea Bocelli, the event was the first-ever public concert in The Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square.
Bocelli and KAROL G performed their song “Vivo Por Ella” for the first time. Other performers included Pharrell with the Voices of Fire Gospel Choir, John Legend, Jennifer Hudson, Clipse, Teddy Swims, Jelly Roll, Angélique Kidjo, and more.
There was also an aerial drone and light show by Nova Sky Stories, featuring imagery inspired by the Sistine Chapel. The drones drew images of the late-Pope Francis, the Virgin Mary, doves, and Michelangelo’s creation of Adam in the night sky of St. Peter’s Basilica. The concert was broadcast live globally on Disney+, Hulu, and ABC News Live.
Williams offered opening remarks ahead of the historic concert: “I want to sincerely thank His Holiness Pope Leo [XIV] for opening the doors to this sacred place to us all, and reminding us that true compassion and grace begin with fraternity, seeing one another as brothers and sisters, and fellow human beings.”
“This is an opportunity for people to galvanise, and recognize their strength in numbers. We still haven’t done that as a species, we still haven’t asked ourselves for the sake of humanity, far beyond the reaches and constrictions of different religions, can we just hold hands for a moment and see the light that we have.”
