Rock in Rio 2026 Metal Day Features Headliners and Genre Shifts
3 sources · Brazil
Who reported this
- G1
- CNN Brasil
- Folha de S.Paulo
What the colours mean
- Left
- Centre-left
- Centre
- Centre-right
- Right
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Every source for this story reports from Brazil.
Avenged Sevenfold and Bring Me The Horizon served as the primary headliners for the metal focused day at Rock in Rio 2026 on Saturday, September 5. The event featured a diverse lineup including Sepultura, Bad Omens, and Major RD. Sepultura performed under heavy rain in what was described as a farewell atmosphere, as the band is ending its career with a final show scheduled for November in São Paulo. Bring Me The Horizon utilized a videogame aesthetic for their performance, with vocalist Oliver Sykes speaking Portuguese and interacting with the crowd. Bad Omens debuted at the festival on the Palco Sunset, performing a set that blended metalcore with pop and electronic elements.
Reporting on the event's commercial success varied. Center leaning sources noted that tickets for the rock and heavy metal days did not sell out, contrasting this with the sold out status of dates featuring pop and k pop acts. These sources suggested that the lack of sell outs might be due to a lack of renewal in the rock genre or the repetition of headliners like Avenged Sevenfold. Conversely, center left leaning sources focused on the artistic performances and the appeal of the bands to a new generation of fans, highlighting the viral success of Bad Omens on TikTok and the personal connection Oliver Sykes has to Brazil.
Other performances included Major RD, who performed trap music with rock elements at the Palco Favela, attracting a large youth audience. The festival's broader schedule includes upcoming performances by Elton John, Calvin Harris, and Stray Kids.
How each side framed it
- Centre-left
- These outlets emphasized the individual performances, the bands' connection to the audience, and the modernization of the metal scene.
- Centre
- These outlets focused on the commercial decline of rock and the lack of ticket sell outs compared to other genres.
Sources
- Centre CNN Brasil: Avenged Sevenfold at Rock in Rio 2026: check possible setlist of the show
- Centre Folha de S.Paulo: Released on metal day, Major RD gathers youth and establishes the place of trap at Rock in Rio
- Centre Folha de S.Paulo: Under rain, metal band Sepultura gives its last performance at Rock in Rio
- Centre Folha de S.Paulo: Rock and heavy metal days do not sell out tickets at Rock in Rio 2026
- Centre-left G1: Bad Omens setlist at Rock in Rio: see how the band's show at the festival should be
- Centre-left G1: Bad Omens debuts at Rock in Rio with its potent 'metalcore sofrência', a TikTok hit and excites a new generation of metalheads
- Centre-left G1: Bring Me The Horizon transforms Rock in Rio into a grand, nostalgic videogame played in Portuguese
- Centre-left G1: Avenged Sevenfold setlist at Rock in Rio: see how the band's show at the festival could be
100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.