Rolling Stones to play first-ever show in Cuba
HAVANA - The Rolling Stones say they will play a free concert in Havana on March 25, becoming the biggest act to play Cuba since its 1959 revolution.
The Stones will play in Havana's Ciudad Deportiva three days after President Barack Obama visits Havana. The concert is expected to draw a massive audience in a country where the government once persecuted young people for listening to rock music, then seen as a tool of Western capitalism. Along with dropping that policy, the Cuban government has increasingly allowed large non-official gatherings.
The band says in a statement that "we have performed in many special places during our long career but this show in Havana is going to be a landmark event for us, and, we hope, for all our friends in Cuba too."
Rolling Stone magazine reports the band is currently in the middle of its "Latina America Ole" tour, playing venues throughout Central and South America to rave reviews and packed stadiums.