Bieber’s emotional return
Justin Bieber headlined Coachella on Saturday in what outlets called his first major return in four years and performed an emotional version of “With You” that was paired with childhood footage on the big screen. ( )
Justin Bieber closed Coachella on Saturday, April 11, with his first major festival headline set in four years. (indy100.com) Coachella’s 2026 festival is running April 10 to 12 and April 17 to 19 in Indio, California, and Bieber is billed as the Saturday headliner on both weekends. The festival’s official site says the performances are also being carried on YouTube. (coachella.com 1) (coachella.com 2) Setlist records from Saturday’s show list more than 30 songs, including “Baby,” “Sorry,” “Where Are Ü Now,” “YUKON” and “DAISIES.” The same record says Bieber also performed “With You” live for the first time since 2012. (setlist.fm) The return follows a long stretch in which Bieber mostly stayed away from full concerts after canceling the rest of his Justice World Tour in 2022. Billboard reported that he cited Type 2 Ramsay Hunt syndrome when he pulled the plug on the remaining dates. (billboard.com) Since that cancellation, Billboard said Bieber’s live appearances were limited to spots including Rolling Loud Las Vegas in March 2023, a guest appearance during Tems’ Coachella set in 2024, and a performance at the 68th Grammy Awards on February 1, 2026. (billboard.com) The Coachella set did not come out of nowhere. On March 29, Bieber played an invite-only show at the 500-capacity Roxy Theater in West Hollywood, and Billboard Canada called it his first full-length performance in nearly four years. (billboard.com 1) (billboard.com 2) That Roxy show also showed how tightly the comeback was being managed. Billboard reported that Coachella’s usual Southern California “radius clause” would normally block nearby performances, but The Roxy’s ties to Goldenvoice, the same promoter behind Coachella, created a workaround. (billboard.com) Saturday’s headline slot now puts Bieber back on Coachella’s main stage with a second weekend set still scheduled for April 18. For an artist whose last several years were defined more by canceled dates than by full concerts, the desert show was the clearest sign yet that he is performing at scale again. (coachella.com) (billboard.com)
