Weekend one of Coachella 2026 had three headliners, three very different nights and one stage that never lit. By Sunday, the desert had a pop prophecy fulfilled, a split verdict on Justin Bieber and a first: a Latina headliner, Karol G, closing out the festival’s biggest stage.
Friday: the called shot, and the wind
Sabrina Carpenter did what she said she would. Two years earlier, closing her first Coachella set, she told the crowd, “Coachella, see you back here when I headline.” On Friday (April 10), she turned that into a Hollywood production, with a “SABRINAWOOD” sign on stage for most of the show, poodle and Dalmatian dancers for “Manchild” and walk-ons from Sam Elliott, Susan Sarandon and Will Ferrell. “I can’t believe I’m headlining Coachella!” she told the crowd. “I mean… I can a little bit. But it sounds nicer to say that.”
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Billboard’s verdict was that she “made good” on the slot. The set was a one-woman show with no musical guests, and “Nonsense” was the only major song of her past three years she skipped. Ferrell’s turn as a handyman fixing her short-circuited stage, failing to light a cigarette in the breeze, got the best line of the night: “Smoking is bad for you anyway.”
The wind, though, took the other main-stage headliner. Anyma’s set was scrapped about 15 minutes after its midnight start, with the screens reading that “due to strong winds affecting Anyma’s stage build, he is unable to perform tonight.” It was meant to be the global debut of his new ÆDEN production. “We’ve done everything in our control to build the show I’ve worked an entire year on,” he wrote afterward. At press time, he was still scheduled for weekend two.
Saturday: Bieber’s split decision
Bieber’s Saturday headline slot drew a crowd Rolling Stone argued may have been the biggest ever on the field, a product of scarcity (he last toured the U.S. in 2022) and a lack of counterprogramming. The set itself divided people. Rolling Stone’s review called it “messy” and “*Swag*-heavy,” with Bieber mostly alone on a huge stage playing mid-tempo songs, a mid-set exodus during a run of deep-cut acoustic tracks, and a closing stretch that rallied with guests: Dijon on “Devotion,” Tems on “I Think You’re Special,” Wizkid on “Essence” and Mk.gee on “Daisies.” The Kid Laroi also sat in for “Stay.” Rolling Stone’s conclusion was that he “missed the mark,” though fans loyal to him have little to worry about.
Sunday: Karol G makes history
Karol G was the weekend’s other history lesson. Rolling Stone called her set “explosively energetic, wildly sexy, yet grounded and socially conscious” and the biggest night of her career: a three-story stone cave, 20 of her own songs including “TQG” and “Amargura,” a Gloria Estefan cover, a four-song mini-set from Yandel and songs with Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles. She also spoke directly to her audience.
This is for my Latinos that have been struggling in this country lately. We stand for them, I stand for my Latino community…feel proud, raise your flag.
Karol G, Rolling Stone
The guest list was the show
Weekend one ran on cameos. Sabrina Carpenter’s set kept to actors, and the pop world filled the rest. Rolling Stone counted Teddy Swims rocking out with David Lee Roth, Joe Jonas and Vanessa Carlton, Young Thug bringing out Camila Cabello for “Havana,” FKA twigs honoring West Coast ballroom culture with Honey Balenciaga, Makayla Basquiat and Dashaun Wesley, and Major Lazer bringing out M.I.A. for “Paper Planes.” KATSEYE made their Coachella debut and brought HUNTR/X to the desert for a “Golden” moment, per Billboard, while the off-site party circuit had Kaytranada, Justine Skye and Lizzo at the 818 Outpost.
The rest of the field
The best stories were off the headline stage. BINI became the first Filipino group to play Coachella, telling the crowd, “We are so grateful to be here to represent the Philippines.” Geese, fronted by Cameron Winter, turned a partial Bieber cover into the weekend’s weirdest rock moment before a crowd-wide scream-along to “There’s a bomb in my car!” Sombr brought out Billy Corgan, and David Byrne sang Talking Heads classics and told the crowd, “Love and kindness are a form of resistance.” Slayyyter debuted songs from Worst Girl in America at 3 p.m. on day one, and Rolling Stone said PinkPantheress’ set made it “undeniably true” that pop’s future is hers.
A purpose-built bunker for Radiohead’s Kid A MNESIA movie premiered Friday. Jack White’s surprise Saturday set got the whole field singing “Seven Nation Army.” Nine Inch Noize, the Boys Noize and Nine Inch Nails collaboration, played its first full set with dancers in grey bodysuits engulfing Trent Reznor during “Closer.”
What it added up to
The pattern across weekend one was how much of the culture happened away from the headline slots: a first Latina headliner, the first Filipino group on the bill, a Hollywood-themed pop show and a Bieber set that split a crowd Rolling Stone argued may have been the biggest the field has held. And the weather reminded everyone, once more, that a stage is a building.
Weekend two follows next weekend on the same stages, with Anyma still on the schedule.
- Weekend one
- April 10–12, 2026
- Headliners
- Sabrina Carpenter (Fri.), Justin Bieber (Sat.), Karol G (Sun.)
- Cancelled
- Anyma’s Coachella Stage set (Fri., high winds); still scheduled for weekend two
Added to the High Grailed archive on October 12, 2026.
