Pop star Christina Aguilera will be performing a free concert in Malta at the Granaries in Floriana on September 16.
Aguilera is one of the best-selling music artists of all time and a multi-Grammy, MTV Video Music and Billboard Music-winning artist. Her rise to stardom first began when she appeared on television as a child on The All-New Mickey Mouse Club on the Disney Channel.
Her breakthrough in the music industry was in 1999 with her self-titled debut album.
She found international fame with hits such as Genie in a Bottle, What a Girl Wants and Beautiful.
Her free performance is part of the programme for Malta’s Europride celebrations this September. Aguilera's performance will follow a Pride march that starts at St Elmo and ends at the Granaries and will form part of a Pride concert held that day.
Other artists will be announced in the coming weeks, with the full concert line-up expected to be out in June.
Information on tickets will be announced soon.
Her performance was announced on Wednesday morning in a news conference held by the Parliamentary Secretary for Reforms and Equality Rebecca Buttigieg and team members of Europride 2023.
“September will be the month where we will see our capital, Valletta, and the rest of Malta and Gozo transform into a rainbow of love,” Buttigieg said.
Announcing the performance on social media, Europride 2023 praised Aguilera for her extraordinary talent and unwavering support for the LGBTIQ+ community.
In 2019 the singer was lauded by the Human Rights Campaign for using her platform to share a message of hope to those who have been marginalised and to bring visibility to the LGBTIQ community.
"This concert is all about celebrating diversity, equality, and inclusivity, bringing together people from across Europe and beyond in a vibrant display of solidarity," organisers of the concert said.
Malta won the bid to host EuroPride 2023 three years ago, through local NGO Allied Rainbow Communities (ARC).
The central theme for EuroPride Valletta 2023 is Equality from the heart.