J Balvin Gets Abducted by Aliens, Doja Cat Gyrates in Mud at Coachella Day Three

Coachella 2024 was the year of the A-list guests. Across all three days, top stars made appearances either onstage or in the crowd to support their musician besties. Olivia Rodrigo joined No Doubt, Will Smith pulled up for J Balvin, Justin Bieber sang with Tems, Billie Eilish threw a last-minute party at the DoLab stage, and Shakira even announced a world tour during Bizarrap’s set.

The talk among some festivalgoers ahead of Coachella suggested that this year’s lineup might underwhelm, but the number of stars joining their friends onstage surely helped with that. Plus, the headlining sets from Doja Cat, Lana Del Rey, and Tyler, the Creator surely did not disappoint.

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That’s a wrap on Weekend One! Here are some of the best things we saw at Coachella on Sunday, April 14.

Doja Cat’s post-apocalyptic performance

Doja Cat brought a hard-nosed, hot-blooded spectacle, conceived of pure, unadulterated id. Doja opened with a sample from Madonna’s biting 1994 anthem “Human Nature” — then blazed through several tracks off her 2023 album, Scarlet, such as “Agora Hills” and “Paint the Town Red.” Sampling Dionne Warwick’s 1964 classic, “Walk On By,” the latter became Doja’s first Number One hit as a soloist last September.

Doja also welcomed 21 Savage, who rapped opposite her in the 2024 track, “H. N. I. E.” Bashfully wielding a bouquet of baby’s breath, Teezo Touchdown joined Doja for a live debut of their song “Masc,” as featured in Scarlet 2 CLAUDE, the deluxe edition of Scarlet, which dropped last week. A$AP Rocky also emerged from backstage, raring to throw down to a metal version of their brand new song, “URRRGE!!!!!!!!!!”

Doja omitted her most poppy of songs from her setlist, including “Say So,” “Woman,” and “Kiss Me More,” her Grammy-winning pop number with SZA. As Los Angeles’ biggest female hip-hop star to date, Doja chose instead to flex her precision as an MC, spitting fire in each verse without missing a single beat. –S.E.

J Balvin’s new beginning

What better way to start a new era than with a career-defining Coachella set?

J Balvin delivered one of the best-produced, most exciting sets of the weekend Sunday night, as he danced alongside aliens and brought out the alien exterminator himself — Will Smith, dressed in his Men in Black Agent J role, for a rendition of the film’s theme song. Jada Pinkett Smith (dressed in a large fur coat) and Katy Perry were among the stars who watched the E.T.-abduction-themed performance from the crowd.

Backed by dancers in Lady Gaga-esque, otherworldly outfits, Balvin jumped between recent hits such as “Colmillo” (as he welcomed Jowell and Randy) and the Usher-sampling “Dientes,” along with some of his older tracks like “Ginza” and “La Canción” that had the crowd jumping. It sure helped to have Tainy behind the turntables to keep the crowd going.

“Es una nueva temporada de J Balvin,” he teased onstage: “It’s a new season of J Balvin.”  –T.M.

Victoria Monét hosts a consciousness-raising burlesque revue

Encircled by tropical plants and a live funk band, the Mojave stage was converted into Club Monét on Sunday night, when Victoria Monét hosted her own sensual, R&B burlesque revue. For her first act, the Grammy-winning singer and songwriter slinked onto the stage in a pinstriped pimp suit and cane, breezing through her songs “Alright” and “Cadillac (A Pimp’s Anthem).” She interspersed her setlist with clips from influential songs by Outkast, Aaliyah, Usher, Sister Nancy, and Sexxy Red.

Things got progressively steamier with her second act, in which she stripped down to a set of lingerie and simulated sexy moves with her all-woman dance crew during “Friend U Can Keep.” She extolled the virtues of working out in her performance of “Ass Like That,” but made sure to affirm the body diversity of those cheering her on in the audience.

“Whether you get ass shots or it’s natural, it doesn’t matter,” said Monét. “If it’s real or fake, people will still wanna f—. You look good!”

She made another show of compassion in her performance of “Stop (Askin’ Me 4Shyt),” and becoming one of the few acts at Coachella to condemn attacks on civilians in Gaza, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. “Stop the wars, stop the hate, stop the genocide!” she proclaimed. “We need love. Stop thinking so small. We need to think big, bitch!”

With that point made, she added: “And stop asking for the ‘Alright’ music video, because it’s on the way.” Case closed! —S.E.

Reneé Rapp and Kesha say “fuck P Diddy”

Two giant scissors and the cast of the L Word welcomed Reneé Rapp onto the Outdoor Stage Saturday afternoon. Need any more hints about her sexuality?

The silly pop singer — dressed in a trench coat and black sports bra — sang fan favorites like “Colorado” and “Poison Poison.” Rapp knew her crowd well, and before “Willow,” she encouraged: “If you know this song and you know where the ass shake is at, you should do it.”  Then, she gave her set a complete turn, as she welcomed Kesha onstage for a fun rendition of her 2010 hit “Tik Tok” that included a  big “fuck you” to Diddy in the song’s opening line.

Later in the set, Rapp brought her girlfriend (and fab performer) Towa Bird for a rendition of “Tummy Hurts,” perfectly tying together the sapphic themes of her set to perfection. –T.M.

Carin León builds a bridge between Mexico and Nashville

¡Arriba, la Yeehaw Agenda! Carin León, global ambassador for Mexican heritage music, made his debut at the festival on Sunday afternoon. Blessed by the warm glow of golden hour, the Sonora native melded roots-music traditions from across the U.S. and Mexico, serving the audience a comforting blend of norteño and American blues and country.

While fans were treated to his greatest hits — among them the soulful “Primera Cita,” and “Que Vuelvas” with cumbia stars Grupo Frontera — León flaunted his Nashville bona fides by performing “The One (Pero No Como Yo),” a bilingual duet he recorded with country star Kane Brown. “Whatever you’re chasing better be a tequila double shot,” sang León in a rich, Southern drawl. “‘Cause you know I’m the one!”

Fans kicked up dust by dancing along to the brisk pace of “La Boda del Huitlacoche,” and León almost lost his cowboy hat to the wind. Flown in from Miami were Venezuelan hitmakers Mau y Ricky, who arrived sharply dressed to perform “Llorar y Llorar” — which was graced by the nostalgic country feel of a lap steel guitar. León pleased the crowd further with a bluesy version of “Te Quiero,” a song by rock en español legends Hombres G; he then knocked it out of the park with a brassy rendition of Selena’s “Si Una Vez.” León will represent Mexico once more at the upcoming Stagecoach Festival, also in Indio, taking place April 26-28 at the Empire Polo Club. —S.E.

Bebe is more than good: She’s the drama

Bebe Rexha’s got hits. The songwriter-turned-pop-hitmaker packed her 45-minute set with some of the biggest songs of her career as she opened with G-Eazy’s “Me, Myself, and I” and “I Got You” and later played “Call You Mine” and “In the Name of Love,” two DJ collaborations from over the years.

“I started as a songwriter and I always thought I wasn’t cool enough for Coachella, but here I am now. I’m cool now, mothafuckers!” she told the crowd as they let out a roar and she teased her next song. “I guess it’s meant to be.”

Rexha even found room to preview three unreleased songs: the electric banger “I’m the Drama,” “Chase It” during a dance break, and later, “Beat It Up,” as she shook her ass on the floor alongside her dancers. “Did you like our little onstage orgy?” she joked.

Rexha ended her set with “I’m Good (Blue)” alongside David Guetta, who shared a sweet story about discovering the singer back in 2015. Rexha’s a force to be reckoned with, and she truly deserved to be on that Coachella main stage. –T.M.

Catch them while you can: FLO

FLO are sort of like the PowerPuff Girls, if the trio’s superpower was harmonizing gorgeously. The British R&B trio — Renée Downer, Jorja Douglas, and Stella Quaresma — proved to be one of the most exciting acts at Coachella all weekend, as they packed their 45-minute set with perfect choreo and stunning vocals.

The group performed songs such as “Summertime” and “Immature” (“We’re leaving immature men in the past. That ends today,” instructed Douglas) from their debut EP, The Lead, before summoning the energy of the Nineties with their Missy Elliott-sampling “Fly Girl.”

The girls covered En Vogue’s “Don’t Let Go” and Destiny’s Child “Bootylicious” before performing their track “Feature Me” with Janet Jackson’s “I Get Lonely.” The performance suggested a trio that’s well on their way to becoming the biggest stars. – T.M.

Lil Yachty surprises fans with Mac DeMarco cameo

Atlanta’s Lil Yachty captained an eclectic set on Sunday evening inside the Mojave tent. Standing at the helm of his own makeshift ship, bearing his nickname “Lil Boat,” Yachty mostly performed songs from his latest record, 2023’s Let’s Start Here. An experimental foray into the realm of psych-rock, with assists from members of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Chairlift, and MGMT, it’s an album almost made for Coachella.

Onstage, Yachty broke the hypnagogic spell he’d cast on his fans, who responded with hair-raising shrieks as he called indie superstar Mac DeMarco to the stage. “Sing with Daddy,” DeMarco said to the audience, before joining Yachty in serenading fans with his own songs “On the Level” and “Chamber of Reflection.” Yachty sailed effortlessly into previous trap numbers like “Flex Up” and “Minnesota” — but his rousing performance of his art-rock song, “I’ve Officially Lost Vision!!!!” was transcendent. —S.E.

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