Final weekend of 2024 Coachella Valley Music Fest starts today
DJ Pee Wee performs during the the first weekend of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club on Friday, April 12, 2024, in Indio, Calif. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)
INDIO – The second and final weekend of the 2024 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in Indio gets underway today, featuring adult contemporary, electronica, rap, techno and other artists performing throughout the venue.
Some of the acts on tap for Friday at the Empire Polo Club include Lana Del Rey, Mall Grab, Justice, Ken Carson and Skin on Skin.
They’ll be followed Saturday by Dom Dolla, DJ Eric Prydz, who was also featured during the first weekend‘s entertainment, Kenya Grace, Militarie Gun, Sublime and Tyler, The Creator, who played sets last week, too.
The fest’s closing day, Sunday, will boast a motley assortment, ranging from DJ Seinfeld to Flight Facilities and Ludmilla to Taking Back Sunday.
As with the previous Sunday’s slate, Grammy Award-winning singer and rapper Doja Cat will close out the show.
Thousands of attendees are expected to converge on the venue, where 81 arrests were made from April 12-14, mostly connected with alcohol intoxication, being under the influence of controlled substances and possession of drugs for sale, according to the Indio Police Department. No violent felony offenses were documented.
There were a few surprises during the first weekend, with Latin and pop music sensation Shakira taking to the stage for at least two sets. She’s slated to go on tour later this year. The event also celebrated a reunion of the 1990s band No Doubt, which hadn’t performed as an ensemble in nine years.
Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, Tom Dumont and Adrian Young played for a little over an hour, performing standards such as “Just a girl,” “Don’t
Speak” and “Spiderwebs.”
At one point, No Doubt was joined by unscheduled guest Olivia Rodrigo for a performance of the band’s 2000 song “Bathwater.”
An additional stage was added this year, as well as extended three-hour sets, featuring Honey Dijon, Green Velvety, Michael Bibi, Jamie XX, Floating Points and Daphni last weekend.
Preparations for traffic connected with the event 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, April 11. Non-campers were invited to use spots in the general parking area 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 providing 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. YouTube has aired livestreams of the event.
