The gravitational center of the pop culture world sprang from California this past weekend, as Sabrina Carpenter dazzled in sultry-yet-playful fashion, Karol G wowed and The Strokes delivered a dash of good old-fashioned indie rock at Coachella 2026 weekend one.
Wearing custom Christian Louboutin on night one of the famously buzzed-about festival, Carpenter delivered the goods as a new generational superstar (at least, if the sold-out crowd’s reaction is to be believed).
The lineup was bolstered by a slew of genre-spanning acts, including The xx, Wet Leg, Turnstile, FKA Twigs, Addison Rae, Clipse, Ethel Cain and Young Thug, while Justin Bieber clocked his first-ever headlining set at the festival. For Bieber, it marked his first live concert in three-plus years, delivered to support recent albums, Swag and Swag II. Appearing in a breezy hoodie from his SKYLRK clothing line, Bieber performed a bevy of tracks from those two albums, according to GQ. Bieber also notably sang along to videos from a slew of early YouTube hits that helped make him famous (beyond just his better half, Hailey Bieber, that is).
Fans of guitar-driven music weren’t without options. Late addition Jack White (added to the lineup about two weeks ago) delivered a ripping, “kick ass” set, according to music publication Consequence Of Sound, The roughly 45-minute outing delivered a searing mix of hits from White’s The Raconteurs as well as classic White Stripes hits like “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground.”
Carpenter certainly met the moment as a top-billed act. The “House Tour” singer delivered an extended take on her most recent single, which arrived earlier this month with a sultry, playful video featuring Madelyn Cline and Margaret Qualley. Fan favorites like “Manchild” also carried the sensual, poppy Carpenter set, which started and ended with a classic car-heavy bang.
Carpenter brought the house down with playful pop energy and a “pin-up girl” wardrobe across a five-act set that featured a comical appearance from Will Ferrell, while Snoop Dogg also joined the singer to raucous applause. Carpenter’s “bombshell era” seems to be in full force, although the superstar certainly hasn’t lost her sense of humor.
Vice called the set and its many guest stars (including Susan Sarandon and show intro narrator Sam Elliott) “as campy, silly and fun as you could imagine.” Suffice to say, the “Espresso” singer delivered a headliner-approved performance with the goods to keep festival goers coming back next weekend.
For all of the action happening above ground this past weekend at Coachella 2026, attendees were treated to a feast for the eyes as Radiohead debuted a groundbreaking new audio/visual concept experience in a stunning 17,000-square foot bunker. Dubbed “Motion Picture House: Kid A mnesia,” the expansive 75-minute installation brought together original Thom Yorke artwork and complementary visuals and audio crafted by English collaborator Stanley Donwood. Radiohead enthusiasts who couldn’t make it out to the Empire Polo Grounds are in luck, as the exhibition will hit four North American tour stops this year (presale tickets run about $75 per person starting this week). Of course, the exhibit returns during what promises to be a stunning weekend two at Coachella.
While Radiohead immersed fans in its custom-made bunker concept, a who’s who of superstars, including The Strokes and Sunday headliner Karol G, brought the house down above ground.
Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas, adorned in a cheeky “Crime” shirt playing on the logo of a certain mega-corporation, amused the crowd if briefly between songs before Bieber’s headline set, drawing on a range of early 2000s garage-rock staples.
K-pop group KATSEYE took the stage in utterly impressive fashion just about two years after forming, while diversity ran the gamut from Talking Heads legend David Byrne to a fiery post-punk set from New York rockers Interpol.
On the heels of a new album announcement (June’s upcoming Reality Awaits) and a divisive, Autotune-filled new single (titled “Going Shopping”), NYC rock heroes The Strokes still wisely treated at-times hysterical fans to a slew of early ‘aughts hits on a raucous Saturday night Main Stage set, tearing through “Someday,” eternal crowd-pleaser “Last Nite” and 2020 favorite “Bad Decisions.”
Karol G made waves on Sunday night in a groundbreaking headliner performance as the festival’s first top-billed Latina artist. And although it wasn’t her first time at Coachella (that would be 2022), the Colombian superstar performed her first full live show behind her latest album, Tropicoqueta, For those unable to make it to weekend one (or unable to tune in online), the lineup returns at Coachella 2026 weekend two starting this Friday, April 17th.