Coachella 2023: Featured Artists Making History

Giana Mejia

Everyone is excited for Coachella this year and who will be performing there.

Giana Mejia, Photojournalist
January 22, 2023

The annual music festival, Coachella, is on its way! Every year in Indio, California, music fans from everywhere gather for this spring music festival. This 2-weekend event is an opportunity to see all your favorite artists at once and have a fun time with your friends. Coachella offers a variety of music ranging from different genres and popularity. With the incoming spring season, there are countless other activities to do rather than only listening to the live performances. You can freely explore the site to take pictures, relax, or spot other celebrities. However, if you purchase the VIP pass, you have access to the hidden areas, special backstages, and frontstages. 

 

The event headlines are filled with major artists who are popular right now. In the past, they’ve included artists such as Beyoncé, Ariana Grande, Kendrick Lamar, etc. The appearance of such popular artists attracts more and more people every year, typically appealing to the teenage/young adult demographic. In 2022, Coachella had their first debut after COVID-19, headlining with Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, and Swedish House Mafia x The Weeknd. This caused a lot of rave not only because of the featured artists but also because this is the first festival back. Recently, Coachella announced their headliners for the 2023 event: Bad Bunny, BLACKPINK, and Frank Ocean. This diverse lineup reaches fans from many different cultures. According to NBC, Bad Bunny and BLACKPINK make history as the first Latin and Asian headliners performing at the festival. Coachella has received lots of praise for its representation of these communities.

 

Puerto Rican singer and rapper Bad Bunny has been very popular recently. He has brought attention to Hispanic music, becoming one of the biggest artists of 2022. Bad Bunny fan Avani Catana (10) explains “Bad Bunny is bringing lots of attention to the Latin community with his appearance at Coachella this year. His music is listened to by people all over the world, including non-Spanish speakers. Millions of people love his music. Everyone is looking forward to seeing him perform live amongst many other great artists!” According to Billboard, his songs and album reached the top of music charts, alongside other big artists like Harry Styles, Justin Bieber, and Taylor Swift. His album ‘Un Verano Sin Ti’ took over the pop community in 2022. Now, his Latin music will be meeting the stage at Coachella. Following his performance, artists like Gorillaz, Metro Boomin, and Pusha T will perform. Fans are anticipating this performance after his major tour in 2022, making over $300 million dollars. 

The K-pop group, BLACKPINK, also excited fans with the announcement of their appearance at Coachella. They will be the first K-pop group to headline this music festival. Over the course of many years, BLACKPINK has been growing its name in the US. They made their first appearance at Coachella in 2019 as one of the smaller acts. Since 2020, they have been claimed to be the biggest girl group in the world. As K-pop grows more and more popular, BLACKPINK has created fame through their music, outstanding performances, and fashion.

 

The last headliner of the event, Frank Ocean, has created the most buzz online. After years of no releases, fans were questioning if he had retired from music. In 2020, the news struck of the death of his younger brother. Fans speculate that he had taken a break from music due to this incident, but he continued to make public impacts through brand and fashion deals. Frank Ocean fans have been longing for him to release new music. According to Pitchfork, just last month, he restocked the vinyl collection of his album ‘Blonde’ after selling out. People online are anticipating his music return and are excited to see his performance at Coachella.

 

Through the selection of top artists and activities at this music event, Coachella is able to keep its popularity up. By choosing such popular artists, fans go crazy to see all their favorite performers in one event. The festival is also well-known for the extravagant outfits people wear. It has become a popular trend to wear flashy outfits and post on Instagram for this event. This keeps the event relevant among younger people. People will travel from around the nation for this large 2-weekend event. Coachella is able to keep its relevance due to its ability to appeal to younger audiences using trending artists and activities.