Coachella Music Fest adjourns until next weekend

Image: coachella/Instagram

INDIO – Grammy Award-winning singer and rapper Doja Cat had the honor of closing out the first weekend of the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio Sunday, attended by thousands of celebrants and featuring a wide range of artists.

The performer began her set wearing a white hazardous materials protection suit and yellow rubber gloves.

The music festival re-convenes for the weekend of April 19-21. Doja Cat will close out next weekend on Sunday, preceded  J Balvin, Jhene Aiko, Ludmilla, Lil Yachty, John Summit and DJ Snake.

Saturday’s festival was highlighted by the reunion of 1990s Orange County punk/pop/ska band No Doubt, who hadn’t performed together in nine years.

Band members Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, Tom Dumont and Adrian Young played for about an hour and 15 minutes, performing standards such as “Just a girl,” “Don’t Speak” and “Spiderwebs.”

At one point No Doubt was joined on stage by surprise guest Olivia Rodrigo to perform their 2000 song “Bathwater.”

No Doubt was joined on stage by surprise guest Olivia Rodrigo. Image: nodoubt/Instagram

Saturday’s headlining set by Tyler, The Creator lasted about an hour and 20 minutes. The artist was joined on stage by surprise guest Donald Glover in the guise of his alter ago Childish Gambino, with whom he performed “Running out of Time.” A$AP Rocky also made a surprise appearance and joined Tyler, The Creator to perform “Potato Salad” and “Who Dat Boy.”

Tyler, The Creator joked with the crowd that he used to hate both Glover and A$AP Rocky but didn’t feel that way anymore. He was later joined by Charlie Wilson for the song “Earfquake” and by Kali Uchis to perform “See you Again.”

Other performers on the Saturday slate were Ice Spice, Blur, Jungle, Dom Dolla, Bleachers and Kevin Kaarl.

An additional stage was added this year, as well as extended three-hour sets, featuring Honey Dijon and Green Velvet on Friday, Michael Bibi on Saturday and Jamie XX, Floating Points and Daphni on Sunday.

The weekend of April 19-21 will feature Rufus Du Sol the first day, Eric Prydz and Anyma the second day, and Diplo and Mau P for the closing day.

Friday’s opening day featured a surprise appearance by Colombian superstar Shakira, who took the stage during Bizarrap’s set. Shakira performed “La Fuerte” and “BZRP Music Sessions, Vol. 53” and also told fans between songs that she’ll be launching a global tour later this year.

Also Friday, headliner Lana del Rey welcomed Billie Eilish — who was a headliner herself at the 2022 festival — and Jon Batiste.

Becky G added to the surprise appearances on Friday night when she joined Peso Pluma on stage to perform their song “Chanel.” Peso Pluma was also joined by surprise guests Junior H to perform “El Azul” and Arcangel to perform their song “Peso Completo.”

Celebrities spotted in the crowd included Taylor Swift with her beau Travis Kelce, and billionaire Jeff Bezos along with his fiancee, Lauren Sanchez.

Preparations for traffic connected with the fest started last month.

Avenue 50, between Monroe Street and Madison Avenue, has been closed since March 25 and will remain so until May 6 for the dual-weekend entertainment and extensive post-fest cleanups.

According to Indio’s traffic plan, there will be no pedestrian access on Monroe, between Avenue 49 and Avenue 52, nor along Madison, between Avenues 50 and 52.

Police cautioned travel delays will be heavy along Washington Street between Interstate 10 and Avenue 52, as well as Jefferson Street and avenues 48 and 50 going into the Empire Polo Club grounds.

Campers began arriving to set up on Thursday. Non-campers can seek spots in the general parking area as early as 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, before the venue opens at around 1 p.m. each day. Shuttle services depart from local hotels at 12:30 p.m. daily.

Along with Indio police, other law enforcement agencies are lending support throughout the event, including the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and California Highway Patrol.

Festival information, including the entire list of musical acts, can be found here. (CNS)