BLACKPINK will make another history. Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé, and Lisa will be the first K-pop group to headline one of the biggest music festivals in the U.S. this year, Coachella 2023.
There were constant rumors that BLACKPINK would be the first K-pop group to headline the event, and it was finally confirmed on Tuesday, January 10. The girls would be headlining the festival along with Bad Bunny and Frank Ocean.
The global hitmakers will now be in the ranks of Björk, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Ariana Grande, and Billie Eilish as female headliners of the music and arts festival. But aside from headlining the event, they were also the first K-pop group to perform at Coachella in 2019.
Now, after three years, the "Shut Down" singers will be back with another set of great performances. Rosalía, Gorillaz, Björk, Charli XCX, Burna Boy, Alex G, Jai Paul, and Glorilla will also be on the bill for this year's event.
Other acts on the lineup are Boygenius, Christine and the Queens, the Breeders, Noname, Soul Glo, Weyes Blood, Yaeji, Willow, Yung Lean, Yves Tumor, and the Comet Is Coming. It also includes Snail Mail, Saba, Romy (of the xx), Muna, Metro Boomin, Latto, Idris Elba, Kali Uchis, Ethel Cain, and EarthGang.
Frank Ocean was supposed to headline Coachella 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic ended up canceling the show. Hence, festival co-founder Paul Tollett excitedly announced that the singer-songwriter would be back on stage, breaking the news so far in advance.
"Right now, it's the Wild West," he told The Los Angeles Times. "I'm just trying to be as fair as I can to artists and to the fans to make sure that eventually they get to see everyone that we talked about."
After canceling the 2020 and 2021 events, Coachella 2022 marked the return of the music celebration. The 2020 cancellation resulted in a "string of layoffs, furloughs, reduced hours, and salary cuts."
It was then rescheduled to April 2021 but again postponed due to the ongoing threat of the COVID-19 virus. Though the festival returned in 2022, it had its fair share of drama when Kanye West canceled his performance, though The Weeknd and Swedish House Mafia replaced him.
Phantom Labs later sued Kim Kardashian's former husband for $7.1 million for the alleged money he owed them for work on his canceled performance at the event. At the time, Coachella 2022 was headlined by Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, The Weeknd, and the Swedish House Mafia.
Meanwhile, Coachella 2023 will be held at Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, across the two weekends of April 14 to 16 and April 21 to 23.
