‘A kind of massive rave’: Paris braces for 2m revellers as Fête de las Musique returns amid heatwave warnings

Paris is preparing for a street party of unprecedented scale on Sunday, as more than 2 million people are expected to gather for the Fête de la Musique amid a huge influx of music fans from the UK and warnings of record temperatures. France’s annual free street music festival, which has been running for more than 40 years, has grown into the country’s largest cultural event. What was previously a nationwide showcase for local and amateur talent – from village choirs to classical ensembles and techno acts in the capital – has evolved into a vast international open-air celebration. Last year, Paris welcomed a sudden and unexpected rush of music fans from the UK and other neighbouring countries after word spread on social media, creating an impromptu festival attended by about 2 million people. Lamia El Aaraje, Paris’s deputy mayor, said “calls to all of Europe’s youth to come and party” in the city had transformed the event into “a kind of massive rave”. She added: “Last year there was an impact on the public space, there were excesses, incidents, lots of sexual violence. We had a large clean-up issue afterwards so this year we wanted to mobilise ahead of time to secure the event.” The annual celebration, which originated in Paris in 1982, is now celebrated internationally on 21 June as World Music Day. …