The Qiantan Music Festival opened on Sunday at the L Sports Park in Shanghai, drawing thousands of fans to the banks of the Huangpu River for the debut of the city's first regularly operating outdoor concert venue, capable of hosting 30,000 to 50,000 people. The opening show brought together pop, rap and folk musicians, transforming the 60,000-square-meter lawn into a sprawling festival ground. Two stages and eight audience zones were set up for the music festival, and spectators could stand, sit, or lie on the grass to enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of an outdoor concert. "The environment is very good today. It is one of the best I've experienced at music festivals," said a spectator. "It's energetic, and we feel quite at ease. It feels like Hyde Park in London," said another spectator. The Qiantan Music Festival plans to stage 20 more large-scale outdoor shows in 2026, aiming to set a new benchmark for outdoor entertainment in Asia. "This is the first time that we hold a music festival along the Huangpu River in the downtown area, and the location advantages are obvious. It has a strong transport accessibility. Nearby, there are commercial facilities such as Taikoo Li, covering 660,000 square meters. And Shanghai Oriental Sports Center also stages large concerts. This enables the coordination of both indoor and outdoor venues, as well as coordination with surrounding businesses," said Zou Xiusong, director of the Cultural Industry Division at the Pudong New District Culture, Sports, and Tourism Bureau. To welcome the music festival, the venue was renovated in just three months, with a 1.4-kilometer ring road widened to 10 meters, nine new entry and exit points added for crowd dispersal, and designated taxi and ride-hailing drop-off zones alongside shuttle bus services. SHOTLIST: Shanghai, China - Dec 7, 2025 1. Aerial shot of outdoor music festival; 2. Sign showing "L Sports Park"; 3. Various of outdoor music festival, spectators; 4. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) spectator (name not given): "The environment is very good today. It is one of the best I've experienced at music festivals."; 5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) spectators (name not given) (partially overlaid with shot 6): "It's energetic and we feel quite at ease. It feels like Hyde Park in London."; [SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 6. Spectators at music festival; [SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 7. Various of outdoor music festival, spectators; 8. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zou Xiusong, director, Cultural Industry Division at Pudong New District Culture, Sports, and Tourism Bureau (starting with shot 7): "This is the first time that we hold a music festival along the Huangpu River in the downtown area, and the location advantages are obvious. It has a strong transport accessibility. Nearby, there are commercial facilities such as Taikoo Li, covering 660,000 square meters. And Shanghai Oriental Sports Center also stages large concerts. This enables the coordination of both indoor and outdoor venues, as well as coordination with surrounding businesses."; 9. Music festival posters; 10. Various of security forces; 11. Various of volunteers, spectators; 12. Police officers, spectators. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]