The 2024 Coachella headliners put on a show that highlighted each of their music, talents and passions in the most beautiful way.
Lana Del Rey — A Tribute to her Career
Lana Del Rey surprised the audience by riding into her performance on the back of a motorcycle. This put her right back to the girl that was young, wild and free when she came onto the music scene with her debut album “Born To Die.”
Performing her first song “Without You” to a backdrop of ivy climbing up columns building up a castle around her, Lana’s angelic vocals immediately captivate the audience. Singing “All my dreams and all the lights mean / Nothing without you,” the romantic love song becomes a love letter to the hundreds of fans that came to see her.
The first part of her set was a production. Using lighting and colors to create a vibe that emphasized her songs “West Coast,” “Doin’ Time,” “Summertime Sadness,” “Cherry” and “Pretty When You Cry.” Her songs emphasize her female experience, so having dancers float around her with props of fans, fabrics and ariel hoops was the perfect addition.
Lana paused to watch a nostalgic compilation of clips from her past music videos set to her poetic opening monologue of “Ride.” Her next performances of “Ride” and “Born To Die” were centered around her singing to those old videos, singing to her younger self. Lana’s music has always been extremely raw and real because she’s truly lived, and getting to look back on those experiences and see how far she’s come was very sentimental.
Another beautiful reflection of her journey was her performance of “Arcadia.” Given her love-hate relationship with LA and the relationships she’s had within it, this song gave an appreciation to the fact that she was performing on the West Coast in concert for the first time in years.
Lana’s songs have always been recognizable for their impressive vocals. She took some time to appreciate that by pulling her backup singers front and center with her for “The Grants” and “Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd.”
The instrumental is just as recognizable as her vocals, and she took the time out of her set to highlight some very talented musicians. She expressed gratitude to her own personal band — who she’s been with for 13 years — and also brought out friends and collaborators Jon Batiste and Jack Antonoff to help her perform her songs “Candy Necklace” and “hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have – but I have it” respectively.
She brought it all to a close with “Young and Beautiful,” a song that really catapulted her into pop culture because of its feature in “The Great Gatsby.” A song that perfectly captures a dreamy romance and contrasts it with the desirability of a woman, this song poses questions to the future about how long will the good times last and how long will she be loved as an artist. With the crowd singing so loud all Lana could do was stand back and appreciate it, I think it’s safe to say she will be loved for years to come.
Tyler, The Creator — Priceless Personality
After opening his set with a comedic video, Tyler, The Creator crashed through an RV and landed on stage. Starting his setlist with “IGOR’S THEME” and “LEMONHEAD,” he immediately brought the energy.
Opting to forego background dancers and choreographed routines, Tyler vibed to his own music. Although pausing to joke about how the sweat was uncomfortable and his back hurt, his energy never let up. The comfort in his body and his movements kept the performance grounded, allowing for another level of connection to the audience.
Tyler kept it extremely real throughout his performance. Pausing for comedic breaks and hilariously honest audience interactions, proved that personality brings entertainment to another level.
Doja Cat — Demanding Attention
After an interesting intro of Doja Cat opening her set at the end of the runway in a white hazmat suit, she unzipped it to reveal a fur costume that matched her knee-length white-blonde wig. Stepping into fur boots to complete the look, she crawled to the main stage to her track “Demons.” Joined by the dancers surrounding her, their big, spastic movements immediately demanded attention.
After making a dramatic show of brushing their hair during her song “Tia Tamera,” Doja Cat then disappeared behind a curtain for a wardrobe change. Standing before a bright spotlight that projected her shadow onto the curtain for the audience to see, she made a show of “shaving her head,” letting us all know that she is moving on from her past work.
With a setlist of almost solely of her new work from her new album “Scarlet 2 CLAUDE,” special effects of smoke, fire and strobe lights emphasized the aggressive attitude of the music.
Her set added an almost theatrical element. With industrial rafts and platforms, Doja Cat and her dancers used every inch of the stage. On top of the insane choreography, wardrobe and props used to entertain the live audience, Doja Cat utilized the camera to put on a show for viewers at home.
Dragging the cameraman captured the YouTube livestream onto the stage. The cameraman was thrown into the middle of her dancer’s formation. Switching to a point-of-view perspective, the dancers pulling and interacting with the camera made viewers feel like they were a part of the performance. The camera remained close-up and intimate throughout the rest of her performance, giving viewers at home their own little special piece of the festival.
On top of all that, the girl can dance. With choreography of her own that kept up with the level of her professional dancers, she strutted all across her stage. Even spending part of her set on a floating platform, Doja Cat proved that her stage presence is larger than life.
