A music gala featuring international pop idols will take place on Tuesday on Shanghai's landmark the Bund to celebrate the 30-day countdown to the opening of the 2010 World Expo.

Chinese pop stars CoCo Lee, Kris Philips, Sun Nan will line up alongside Dutch jazz songstress Laura Fygi, South Korean pop sensation Rain, Latvian-born pop icon Vitas and a host of other celebrities to perform at the special celebratory gala, which is expected to be the biggest outdoor event publicizing the Shanghai World Expo.

Along with the center stage on the Bund, open areas off the Danube, Nile, Ganges, Amazon and Hudson rivers in various countries will set up coordinate stages to join in the grand event.

The highlight of the celebration will be a chorus of We Are The World sung by performers on all six stages across the world.

The music video of the Expo's theme song 2010 Waits for You, starring TV hostess Yang Lan, musician Tan Dun, pianist Lang Lang, basketball star Yao Ming, and Hong Kong entertainment stars Andy Lau and Jackie Chan, will make its debut at the gala.

The event will be covered live by TV networks from Shanghai, North America, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Japan in an effort to raise the awareness of 2010 World Expo worldwide.

The World Expo will run from May 1 to October 31.

(Xinhua News Agency March 30, 2010)