If it seems a little early (or late) to be talking about Coachella, that's because it is.
Typically, the Indio, California music festival presents its lineup in January, kicking off the year for North American festivals. But this year, the lineup arrived on Nov. 20, the first Coachella lineup drop since it was moved from October to April in 2001. It's likely an effort to generate a longer track for ticket sales, given the hostile which is the outlook for big festivals at the moment. – not to mention that 2024 was, more or less, a bad year for Coachella.
Coachella returns to its usual fanfare in 2025 with Lady Gaga, Green Day, Post Malone and Travis Scott as headliners. The festival also features major sets from Missy Elliott, Charli XCX, Megan Thee Stallion, The Original Misfits, Kraftwerk, LISA, Anitta, JENNIE, Zedd, FKA twigs and many more.
Following the trends of the last five editions of Coachella, the 2025 selection has a heavy emphasis on both global acts and electronic stalwarts. But beyond the common sense of feeling like you're getting too old to recognize most of the names on the lineup, Coachella 2025 is a bit of a mess on purpose. It's now obvious that festivals on this side of the Atlantic are experiencing an identity crisis, and while the Coachella 2025 lineup is stronger than last year's (or even 2022's, one could argue), it's still a collection. of names that feel particularly randomly next to each other.
Perhaps that is the big issue: less general cohesion in favor of putting together a mosaic, halfway between the past and the future. Or, as we're seeing more often in the festival game, it's becoming harder than ever to accommodate artists' touring schedules and financial demands. That means a lot more “Thanks, but no thanks” and a lot less “Yes, of course we're playing Coachella! ”—and this alignment is the inevitable result.
Here are some more thoughts on the Coachella 2025 lineup…
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