World Rock Day is trending on Twitter.
The date celebrating the history of rock 'n' roll is trending on social media; São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro have film and photo exhibitions that commemorate icons of the genre. Check out a retrospective of the musical movement.
247 - July 13th was officially designated World Rock Day after a 1985 concert advocating for the eradication of hunger in Ethiopia and other African countries, bringing together some of the most representative figures in world rock, including The Who, Led Zeppelin, Dire Straits, Madonna, Queen, Joan Baez, David Bowie, BB King, Mick Jagger, Sting, Scorpions, U2, Paul McCartney, Phil Collins, and Eric Clapton. But the story began much earlier, in the 1950s, with Elvis Presley's incendiary guitar playing. Then, in the 60s, came Jimi Hendrix (pictured) and Bob Dylan with their controversial guitars, and the genre's success was consolidated with the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Who, the Bee Gees, and, above all, with the overwhelming worldwide performance of The Beatles.
In the rock counterculture, there were The Clash, Joy Division, and Sex Pistols; Led Zeppelin would mark an entire generation, as would The Doors. In the 80s, it was the turn of the melodic rock of R.E.M., and also the gothic noise of the Pixies. Nirvana would mark a new phase in the genre in the 90s, with the release of *Smells Like Teen Spirit*, alongside other groups like The Strokes (pictured), Oasis, and Foo Fighters. In 2000, Radiohead, Arctic Monkeys, and Gorillaz also conquered a legion of fans with an electronic variation of rock 'n' roll. Film screenings with tickets costing one real offer a retrospective of punk and rock in São Paulo; and the exhibition *I Am Cliché* brings together icons of the genre at the Banco do Brasil Cultural Center in Rio de Janeiro.