Cover Photo By Christopher Polk
This past weekend was the long-awaited return of Coachella, an iconic music festival and a hot spot for new fashion and trends. Social media has taken the event to a new level, where influencers and artists who attend the festival post their experiences for millions to see. With big headliners and rising artists, there is something for everyone at Coachella. Here are some highlights from weekend one of the festival. Luckily for fans at home, YouTube was able to live stream the different stages and sets performed every hour. The main stage contained popular artists such as The Weeknd, Justin Bieber, and Billie Eilish while other stages included smaller artists who were invited to perform for the first time. No matter the popularity of the performers, each set was unique and powerful in its own way.
The headliners took each night and put their own spin on an hour set. Harry Styles started the weekend off with his flashy, upbeat, and charismatic performance. Styles is the type of artist to grab the audience’s attention and keep them excited throughout the whole night. His long-awaited album, Harry’s House, comes out May 20th, and Coachella was the perfect time to promote his new era. He teased two new songs and sang his new single “As It Was”. He also brought out Shania Twain as a special guest. The duo was unexpected but made so much sense as they sang “Man! I Feel Like Woman” in their coordinating sparkling outfits. He is definitely someone that you need to see live even if you aren’t the biggest fan. Doja Cat also takes the cake for the best performance of the weekend. Her ability to translate her songs to the stage is insane and every hit is twisted into a new style. Her biggest song “Say So” was adapted into a rock version for Coachella and she proved herself a natural on stage as she kept up with her dancers.
Other artists that did a great job were Maggie Rogers, Chelsea Cutler, Finneas, Olivia O’Brien and so many more. Overall, creating a set for a music festival is a difficult task. As a performing artist, you have to understand that all the people in the crowd might not know who you are or be a fan of you. I think most artists did a good job of being genuine to themselves and their music, which will help them gain more of a following. We will see what weekend two holds and if anyone else makes their mark in the desert.