Is Coachella still cool?

Weekend one of Coachella ended with a bang thanks to Doja Cat’s epic set which consisted of her newer rap cuts like “Demons” and strayed away from her 2021 pop hits like “Kiss Me More.”

Tyler, the Creator literally flew onto the stage on Saturday night and brought out Donald Glover and A$AP Rocky. He made it clear he grew to love both artists over the year after hating them.

The first night of the festival started with Lana Del Rey riding into her set on the back of a Harley. She sang “Video Games” with Billie Eilish and closed out Friday night with a firework show as she exited on her bike.

With such a star-studded lineup, some are perplexed as to why it took so long for tickets to sell out this year. USC Thornton professor Nate Sloan believes the decrease in hype is mostly circumstantial.

Nate Sloan: “In a period where we’re still only a few years out from a global pandemic, that effectively shut down live music for two years, I think we are seeing a slow return to form.”

Ticket prices have only increased year to year. In a world where many are struggling financially, Coachella tickets are the last expense on people’s minds.

Sloan: “When the festival started in 1999, I believe it was only $50 for a day pass. Now it’s hundreds of dollars plus the expense of finding a place to stay or camping or whatever kind of accommodation and transportation.”

Sloan says another reason for the decrease is also a positive: everyone’s favorite artists have been performing all year.

Sloan: “Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Olivia Rodrigo. I suspect that some people saved up to go to one of these big concerts, and then maybe don’t have as much inclination to go to Coachella as well.”

As far as the weekend one experience, public relations major Ashley Gauba says the festival’s quality waned at times.

Ashley Gauba: “I went to Kevin Abstract and he had technical difficulties. He kind of got mad at the people doing his sound because he said they were autotuning it. He skipped a few songs because he just wasn’t happy with the way they were coming out.”

She also warned future Coachella attendees of the less glamorous side of the festival.

Gauba: “So by the time you get home, it’s like 3:30, you’re not in bed until 4 a.m., and then you do it again the next day. You’re in the heat and then you’re in the cold. It’s exhausting on your body. It’s so much fun, I want to go every year that I’m able to but it’s exhausting.

But regardless of Coachella’s taxing toll, Gauba says she’ll be back next year and that she encourages other music lovers to do the same...if they can afford it.

For Annenberg Media, I’m Gabriella Medina.