Coachella 2024: Doja Cat pulls out all the stops as first female rapper to headline

When you’re the first female rapper to headline Coachella, you’ve got to pull out all the stops. If anyone was going to do it, and then some, it was Doja Cat.

Her 2022 Coachella set was full of color and several outfit changes, all showing she was headliner material. But when given the chance to fill that coveted Sunday night slot, her performance was a spectacle of all sorts, both with her song choices and her production value.

An unfortunate trend during Weekend 2 is that few performers have brought out special guests, but for the second weekend in a row, Doja brought out Teezo Touchdown for "MASC." He donned a silver suit and, whimsically, sang into a microphone that was decorated as a flower bouquet. During Weekend 1, Doja also brought out 21 Savage and A$AP Rocky, who skipped out this time around.

Even when not much differed between her two performances, it was entertaining through and through.

Coachella 2024: Here's the complete setlist from Doja Cat's Weekend 2 performance

The opening notes of “ACKNOWLEDGE ME” were met with screams from the audience, as Doja appeared on a circular stage surrounded by fans. Wearing a white hazmat suit and yellow gloves, it almost gave the audience a warning that they weren’t ready for all she would deliver.

One of the more unique elements of the show was when she was joined by the five-member South African a capella group The Joy (also dressed in white) leading into “Shutcho.” Their voices blended beautifully, and it kind of makes me want an a capella section for every performance moving forward.

A sight that I could watch over and over again is Doja crawling on the catwalk with long blonde hair and later accompanied by long-haired yeti dancers for “Demons.” I don’t know what’s more striking: the demonic crawl or the Cousin Itt from “The Addams Family” outfit inspiration.

Later donning a silver one-piece, she commanded every inch of the stage as she rocked out to “Tia Tamara” and “F*** The Girls (FTG).” The crowd loved it as well, jumping around and head-banging along. Perhaps even more satisfying than her rap skills was seeing her grin occasionally, likely because she knew how good she was and that the audience was living for it.

Many fans likely hoped to hear her more pop hits such as “Kiss Me More” and “Say So,” but Doja chose to skip those. In the end, it was the right decision, considering that her set was on the edgier side. Instead, they were treated to "Need To Know" and "Paint the Town Red," which check the boxes for popular songs while still fitting into the rap-heavy theme.

You've got to leave the audience on a high note, or in Doja's case, she decided to end on a messy one. She rolled around in a mud wrestling ring in the round podium area for "Wet Vagina" before fireworks shot into the sky. It certainly takes the cake for messiest festival closing ever, and like everything else in her set, another memorable moment.

Ema Sasic covers entertainment and health in the Coachella Valley. Reach her at ema.sasic@desertsun.com or on Twitter @ema_sasic.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Coachella 2024: Doja Cat sets standard as first female rapper headliner