Coachella: Karol G makes history
On Sunday, April 12, Karol G became Coachella’s first Latina headliner while Justin Bieber’s Day 2 set prompted heavy online reaction for leaning into nostalgia. (latimes.com) Reports say Bieber sang along with YouTube clips of early hits like 'Baby,' 'Favorite Girl,' 'Beauty and the Beat,' and 'Never Say Never,' and also performed 'Things You Do,' 'Glory,' and 'Everything Hallelujah,' during which he shouted out Hailey Baldwin. (pitchfork.com) (bbc.com) Bieber is scheduled to headline a second weekend date on April 18. (pitchfork.com)
Karol G closed Coachella’s first weekend on Sunday, April 12, as the festival’s first Latina headliner. (latimes.com) Her set capped Weekend 1 in Indio, California, where Coachella is running April 10-12 and April 17-19, 2026, with Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Karol G billed among the top headliners. (coachella.com) The milestone came three years after Bad Bunny became Coachella’s first Spanish-language headliner in 2023, leaving Karol G as the first Latina artist to headline the festival’s main stage. (hollywoodreporter.com) Onstage, Karol G identified herself as “Carolina Giraldo from Medellin, Colombia” and said earlier Latina artists helped create the path to that slot. (hollywoodreporter.com) Her show included guest appearances from Becky G, Mariah Angeliq, Wisin and Greg Gonzalez, according to The Hollywood Reporter’s recap from the grounds. (hollywoodreporter.com) The same weekend also turned on Justin Bieber’s first dedicated Coachella headlining set, which Billboard said was his first time leading the festival after earlier guest appearances in 2019 and 2024. (billboard.com) Before Coachella, Bieber played two smaller West Hollywood shows at the Roxy and the Troubadour, both built around material from *SWAG* and *SWAG II*, Billboard reported. (billboard.com) At Coachella on Saturday, April 11, Bieber opened with newer material and spent much of the first 50 minutes in what Billboard described as the “swagverse,” with a surprise appearance from the Kid Laroi on “Stay.” (billboard.com) Pitchfork’s report said Bieber later sang along with YouTube clips of early hits including “Baby,” “Favorite Girl,” “Beauty and the Beat” and “Never Say Never,” leaning the set toward a self-referential look back at his teen catalog. (europesays.com) That set is scheduled to repeat on Coachella’s second Saturday, April 18, with Yahoo’s schedule report listing Bieber again at 11:25 p.m. Pacific time on the main stage. (yahoo.com)
