INDIO, Calif. — What makes the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival consistently the most talked-about live music event of the year is that it continues to be a kaleidoscopic melting pot of pop culture.

A sweltering opening weekend at the Empire Polo Club in Indio that saw temperatures reach triple digits didn’t dampen the highlights, which included Lady Gaga’s Coachella rock opera, a surprise appearance by Bernie Sanders to introduce Clairo, a steampunk T-Pain leading tens of thousands of people to 2-step and Gustavo Dudamel and the L.A. Philharmonic backing up LL Cool J on “Mama Said Knock you Out.” And it was all topped off by Post Malone’s Sunday night country-fied headlining set that would have worked just as well at sister festival Stagecoach.

Our staff out in the field compiled the 25 things they’ll remember about this year’s edition of Coachella, which has an encore next weekend.

Friday

Lady Gaga proved she’s music’s greatest kook in campy Coachella thriller

Over two hours, 20 songs and as many costume changes as Coachella’s tightly managed livestream would allow, Lady Gaga mounted a lavish spectacle built around this year’s “Mayhem” album on Friday night, which has been widely received as the singer’s return to high-concept pop after a few years of acting and jazzing (and falling in love). Would you say the production, which she broke into four acts and a finale, carried a coherent or easily discernible story? You would not — though a voice-over at the outset suggested it had something to do with two selves battling for control of a soul. (Mikael Wood)

Missy Elliott gets her freak on

Zooming through the vintage hits that made her one of hip-hop’s brightest stars in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Missy Elliott still seemed to be peering into the future in a rowdy main-stage set that served as a kind of victory lap after the long-overdue arena tour she finally mounted last year.

“Work It,” “One Minute Man,” “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)”: Each sounded as crazily inventive today as it did decades ago, Missy’s gum-snapping rhymes laid over her slithering beats just so. Extra props for wearing a succession of intricate costumes — including a sort of wind-tunnel inner-tube look — in the sweltering desert heat. (Mikael Wood)

Lisa demolished the Sahara Tent as a solo star

Blackpink fans saw Lisa on the Sahara Tent stage in 2019 and the main stage as recently as 2023, but her Coachella set on Friday was a newly-assured pop star blowing through her own lane. Emerging on a monolithic pillar to “Thunder,” Lisa wore a bodysuit rippling with metal claws and singing some of the most virtuosic lead lines and, veering into the heaving trap of “FXCK Up the World,”double time rapping I’ve heard from a K-pop act at Coachella. Of course she’s great at this, but in this new setting, you could really, definitively hear it. (August Brown)

The Marías made it snow at Coachella

As María Zardoya stood atop a raised platform in a white gown, it began to snow on the Outdoor stage during the Marías’ set. Performing “Lejos De Ti,” a melancholic Spanish ballad, the four-piece band brought a storm of faux snow to the desert to match the winter mood. Throughout their set, Zardoya waved a Puerto Rican flag, called out for her Latino family in the audience and even went down to the barricade where she got up close and personal with several fans. Taking the audience through the band’s different eras, the group performed tracks such as “Heavy” off debut album “Cinema” and “Only in my Dreams” from an early EP as well as new single “Back to Me.” (Cerys Davies)

Benson Boone performs ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ with rock royalty

You knew he’d wear a sparkly disco singlet. You knew he’d do a dramatic backflip (or three). But what you didn’t know — unless you happened to check Brian May’s Instagram ahead of time, that is — is that Benson Boone would perform an exceedingly faithful rendition of Queen’s immortal “Bohemian Rhapsody” as he made his Coachella debut on the festival’s main stage Friday night. Backed by the 77-year-old Queen guitarist as well as a large gospel choir in angelic robes, the mustachioed pop-rock dreamboat nailed Freddie Mercury’s lung-busting theatrics — and, more important, seemed to be having a blast as he moved through each of the song’s many rock-operatic twists and turns. (Mikael Wood)

Behind the velvet rope at the Nobu x Red Bull Mirage pyramid

The most extravagant dining experience at Coachella this year came courtesy of the global Japanese restaurant chain from chef Nobu Matsuhisa. Housed in the Red Bull Mirage pyramid in a multi-level terrace that faces the Quasar stage, the Nobu pop-up featured an omakase counter and open-air booths where guests can purchase bottle service from Red Bull and a la carte items from Nobu’s menu. (Daniel Dorsey)

Three 6 Mafia brings out Travis Barker, Machine Gun Kelly, Wiz Khalifa

Talk about ‘90s rap classics. From “Weak Azz B—” to “Get Fly,” rap duo Three 6 Mafia not only performed its well-loved hits but brought out Machine Gun Kelly, Travis Barker and Wiz Khalifa to complete their star-studded Sahara tent set. (Cerys Davies)

Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong joined the Go-Go’s

“Are you frying out there?” Go-Go’s frontwoman Belinda Carlisle asked the crowd of older Coachella-goers sweating under the late afternoon sun before the band launched into its set with the hit “Vacation.” The band leaned heavily into its debut album, “Beauty and the Beat,” but they brought out Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong to do a hit off their third album, “Talk Show,” just past the halfway point. (Vanessa Franko)

Saturday

Travis Scott had a lot riding on his Coachella return

There were moments of Travis Scott’s Saturday night closing set that were some of the most astounding pieces of stagecraft we saw at Coachella. Dancers dangling from cables to look like they were lifted into a fog-strewn ether (or hung like Mussolini). Scott rapping while walking vertically down a wall at an impossible angle, about 50 feet up. Kicking through a moat with a brass band on an in-the-round riser that vaulted him over the main stage field. It’s no coincidence that Scott would use his long awaited Coachella return to assert complete, total mastery of his physical space onstage. Scott is still recovering from the aftermath of the 2021 Astroworld disaster, where 10 fans died and he lost control of everything. (August Brown)

Green Day whipped through its decades of pop-punk hits at Coachella

Nearly 40 years after Armstrong and bassist Mike Dirnt founded the Bay Area trio in 1987, Green Day is as polished and reliable a rock band as any on the road these days. The group (which also includes drummer Tré Cool, who joined in 1990) whipped through its decades of pop-punk hits with speed and precision, even when the size of the venues it visits — last year Green Day toured stadiums to mark anniversaries of 1994’s “Dookie” and 2004’s “American Idiot” — means it has to play to the cheap seats. Here, as one of the rare rock acts to headline Coachella over the last decade or so, Armstrong and his bandmates knew just how to engage the giant festival crowd with call-and-response routines and crisp video production.

As he’s been doing for years, Armstrong tweaked a lyric about “a redneck agenda” in “American Idiot” to protest “a MAGA agenda”; he also changed a line in “Jesus of Suburbia” to express his concern for “the kids from Palestine.” (Mikael Wood)

Bernie Sanders warns fans against ignoring Trump: ‘Turn away at your own peril’

The most consequential cameo of Coachella on Weekend 1 was an unbilled guest slot from Sen. Bernie Sanders. Fresh off a packed rally at Gloria Molina Grand Park in downtown L.A. that drew tens of thousands, Sanders (flanked by congressman Maxwell Frost, a Gen Z inheritor of his vision), Bernie spoke just ahead of Clairo’s Outdoor Theater set at 8:15 p.m.

“This country faces some very difficult challenges. The future of what happens to America is dependent upon your generation,” Sanders said. “You can turn away and ignore what goes on but if you do, you do it at your own peril.” (August Brown)

Post-’Brat’ summer, Charli XCX reminds Coachella who she really is

To many, the world of Charli XCX consists of lime green, high-profile collaborations and hard drugs. But the British pop star’s Coachella performance reminds us, she’s much more. Before she took the stage, murmurs took over the green-clad crowd. Could Billie Eilish make an appearance? What about Troye Sivan? No, it has to be Addison Rae. In her all black attire, the singer appears on the Coachella main stage, causing the crowd to roar. Behind her blacked-out glasses, she sets the tone, exclaiming, “What the f—?” (Cerys Davies)

Gustavo Dudamel and the L.A. Phil score big with star-packed Coachella set

L.A. Phil players and Gustavo Dudamel looked like they were having the time of their lives up there for the sundown set, celebrating conductor’s 17-year tenure before departure for the New York Philharmonic next year. While the classical program ran through big crowd pleasers (Beethoven’s Fifth and Strauss’ “Also sprach Zarathustra” are up there with the greatest riffs of the millennium), the delightfully eclectic range of pop guests covered the whole of the festival. Zedd wowed the crowd with a gospel choir and the most soaring backup arrangements of his life. Argentine rap duo Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso performed over galloping Latin percussion. Maren Morris, Becky G and Laufey each had a regal run with the orchestra on their pop hits. But Dudamel looked positively rapt locking in with LL Cool J, spinning John Williams’ “The Imperial March” from “Star Wars” into LL’s “Rock the Bells.” LL gave him one of his trademark hats as a parting gift. Here’s hoping Dudamel keeps the memento, as Coachella 2025 will become part of his legacy. (August Brown)

Yo Gabba Gabba unleashes Coachella’s inner-child

Beaming with excitement, fans dashed toward the Mojave tent to catch the Coachella debut of Yo Gabba Gabba. The five brightly-colored characters helped the crowd to get its “wiggles” out and sang the hit “Party in My Tummy.” No matter their age, members of crowd sang along to tracks like “Don’t Bite Your Friends” and played games similar to Simon Says. For “Beat of the Day,” Public Enemy rapper and “Flavor of Love” star Flavor Flav, beatboxed and sang about loving different kinds of bugs. DJ Lance Rock, the original host of the children’s program, joined his “Yo Gabba Gabbaland” successor Kammy Kam. To finish the show, Thundercat joined the cast in a pink furry cat suit to sing “The Orange Cat’s Special Time Outdoors” and stayed onstage to perform with Portugal the Man, Paul Williams and “Weird Al” Yankovic. The entire set carried a wholesome, nostalgic energy in keeping with all that Yo Gabba Gabba conjures. (Cerys Davies)

T-Pain was a living hit machine

“It took me 20 years to get on this stage,” T-Pain said near the end of his performance on the main stage, and that meant nobody could stop the pioneering hip-hop and R&B star from singing faithful renditions of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” and the country standard “Tennessee Whiskey.” T-Pain also ran through medley-ized snippets of his many early-2000s hits and had his DJ play Michael Jackson’s “P.Y.T.,” which Kanye West famously sampled for his “Good Life” in 2007, as he roamed across a post-apocalyptic stage set. Am I the only one who didn’t know that T-Pain had gone steampunk? (Mikael Wood)

Weezer performs at Coachella following incident with police

Walking onstage Saturday afternoon in the Mojave tent, Scott Shriner pumped his fist and drew a huge round of cheers from the overflow crowd of several thousands. An episode between police and author Jillian Lauren Shriner happened Tuesday during an unrelated manhunt for several people suspected of fleeing a hit-and-run on the 134 Freeway. The search led officers to a house near the couple’s, where they say they found Shriner with a gun that she used to fire at police; the officers fired back, hitting Shriner, who was transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and later arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. Shriner posted $1 million bond and was released from custody late Wednesday. (Mikael Wood)

Sunday

Post Malone keeps going country at Coachella

Post Malone closed out the first weekend of this year’s Coachella festival on Sunday night with a 90-minute performance in which he remade some of his smash pop-rap hits as down-home country jams. Sauntering onstage holding a red plastic cup and a cigarette, the 29-year-old singer — who went Nashville in 2024 with the chart-topping “F-1 Trillion” after years of dominating pop and hip-hop radio — opened his set with twangy renditions of “Texas Tea,” “Wow” and “Better Now” that felt like they could’ve been performed at Coachella’s country cousin, Stagecoach (where in fact Malone launched his country phase last year). (Mikael Wood)

Ty Dolla Sign took YG, Tyga and Wiz Khalifa to the prison yard

Set the Tycoon Correctional Facility, Ty Dolla Sign showed up to the Sahara tent in handcuffs and a face mask. The stage was completely transformed into a prison yard, complete with barbed wire fences, bunk beds and outdoor gym equipment. Regarded as one of hip hop’s most featured artists, it’s no shock that his performance was filled with his rapping peers. He brought out YG to sing “Toot It and Boot It, ” joined Blxst and Tyga in “Chosen,” sparked up with Wiz Khalifa during “Something New” and even put the spotlight on Leon Thomas, so he could sing his breakout single, “Mutt.” (Cerys Davies)

Megan Thee Stallion’s gets cut off by festival

In the midst of her fiery hit song marathon, Megan Thee Stallion ran off one side of the stage. The camera pans to the other end and former rapper and daytime TV host Queen Latifah appeared in the center of Thee Stallion’s backup dancers. When she strutted down the aisle and it took the crowd a moment to realize who it was — as Latifah rarely performs anymore. Thee Stallion reappeared on stage and reached out to give Latifah a big hug. The duo performed Latifah’s 1993 hit “U.N.I.T.Y Together, they gave a multi-generational lesson in influential female rappers. (Cerys Davies)

Jennie from Blackpink shines as a solo act with an eclectic set at Coachella

Without a hugely popular HBO vacation-murder show to lean on, Jennie of Blackpink arguably had the harder job of her band’s two solo shows this weekend. So it’s huge credit to her that she absolutely packed the Outdoor Theater for a set that went way beyond clubby pop, and showcased the genre twists and regal ballads that her solo career finally makes room for. (August Brown)

For the second year, Junior H and Peso Pluma stir the Coachella crowd

As the first música Mexicana act to grace the main stage all weekend, Junior H brought his sad boy energy to Coachella’s biggest stage. The “Y Lloro” singer had performed on the same stage last year, as a guest of one his closest friends, Peso Pluma. Now it was his turn to reciprocate.

During “Luna,” a slow burn off Pluma’s 2023 album “Génesis,” the corrido tumbado singers join forces to deliver the a heartfelt performance of the romantic ballad. (Cerys Davies)

The best place to cool off at Coachella

One the final day of Coachella Weekend 1 we were all struggling to match the pace we set at the beginning of it. But the temperature was in the mid-90s without a cloud in the sky, and the now-brittle grass at the Empire Polo Club grounds seemed to stretch on forever. Frequent breaks, icy drinks and constant shade are required for a day like this. We found respite at the tiki bar that’s hidden toward the back of the 12 Peaks VIP area, next to the Menotti coffee stand. (Danielle Dorsey)

Up close and personal with Soft Play in the Sonora tent

Seeking some respite from the heat and a pick-me-up on the energy front, we made our way to the air-conditioned Sonora tent, which is essentially a rock club within Coachella. It’s where you can catch most of the punk bands on the festival bill and it is one of the coolest spots, literally and figuratively.

We caught a beautifully chaotic punk set from British punk duo Soft Play. Both drummer Isaac Holman and guitarist Laurie Vincent hopped off the stage and into the crowd and seemed to be having so much fun that they lost track of time and had to revamp their set to fit Coachella’s schedule. (Vanessa Franko)

Shaboozey brings country music to Coachella

Dressed in a form-fitting Nudie-style suit in spite of the 100-degree heat, Shaboozey brought an hour of country music to Coachella on Sunday afternoon, two weeks before he’s booked for the festival’s country cousin, Stagecoach. (A sign on his stage set literally said “Coachella’s Country Hour.”) The singer-songwriter welcomed Noah Cyrus to the stage to do their song “My Fault,” and he sang “Blink Twice,” a new single from the deluxe edition of his Grammy-nominated 2024 LP. But this crowd was clearly waiting for “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” Shaboozey’s Hot 100-topping smash from last year, which inspired a hearty singalong from folks wearing cowboy hats and faux-vintage crop tops. (Mikael Wood)

The hottest act playing Coachella on Sunday afternoon was Meute, literally

Meute was already a spectacle live — they’re a German marching band playing techno music, but they also had to be among the hottest acts at Coachella on Sunday afternoon in part because the members wore their band uniforms, including long-sleeved red jackets. They still got a sizable crowd to dancing under the punishing heat and sunshine. (Vanessa Franko)

Bonus: Chris Lake’s Coachella campground dance party boosts morale of road-weary festgoers on Day Zero

Previously, “Day Zero” has always been an extra day for campers to get settled and get a head start on partying. But when DJ Chris Lake was announced to perform on the new Desert Sky stage, the festival’s pregame became a bit more official. Which was sorely needed after the extra long wait campers endured to get into the campground before the festival, with wait times stretching upwards of 8 hours. But when Lake hit the stage at the campground, seemingly all was forgiven. Under the circus-like tent, trains of fist-pumping fans began to congregate in the circular space. Inflatable flamingos and waving flags whizzed by and clouds of marijuana smoke thickened.

Within the crowd, some seized the opportunity to debut their first festival look — wearing trendy, crochet tops and headscarves. Others had taken a more casual, camping approach, dressed in what seemed to be pajamas. In the middle of the camping hub (that consisted of a general store and several lounge spaces), there were even some listeners, hair wet from the communal showers and toiletries in hand, who stopped by to hear Lake’s blend of heavy bass and pop music. (Cerys Davies)

________

©2025 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.