Coachella 2019: 10 more artists we're excited to see
As you probably know, Coachella 2019 is this weekend (4/12-14) and next (4/19-21). Weekend one is long sold out, and a limited amount of weekend two tickets recently went back on sale, but even if you aren’t going to the festival, Coachella’s livestream is basically an international event. Millions of us are about to tune in this weekend and see if any huge surprise guests appear, or if any set is as monumental as last year’s Beychella (which is getting its own Netflix special on 4/17), or just to relax to the sounds of a daytime set by one of our favorite bands while we hang in the comfort of our own home.
We haven’t heard anything concrete about special guests, but Ariana Grande might be collaborating with K-pop group BLACKPINK, Childish Gambino and Rihanna are premiering a new film during the livestream, and Kanye (who was initially rumored to headline the festival) is apparently showing up Easter morning for a Sunday Service. Will he also make an appearance at the fest (like maybe with his collaborators Kid Cudi or 070 Shake)?
When the lineup was announced, we made a list of 15 lower-poster acts we’re excited for (including Let’s Eat Grandma, who sadly canceled their tour due to the death of a loved one), and now that the festival is just a few days away, we’ve made a list of 10 more artists we’re excited to see at Coachella (regardless of poster font size). Our list would have included Solange, but unfortunately she dropped off the fest last-minute.
Read on for our list in alphabetical order, check out the full lineup here, and stay tuned for set times and more livestream info.
UPDATE: SET TIMES HERE.
UPDATE 2: Livestream Coachella weekend 1 HERE.
ANDERSON .PAAK
Anderson .Paak made one of our favorite rap albums of 2018 with the super ambitious, Dr. Dre-executive-produced Oxnard, and he’s already set to release another album, Ventura (also executive produced by Dre) this Friday, just hours before he takes the Coachella stage. Going by recent singles “King James” and “Make It Better” (ft. Smokey Robinson), it doesn’t sound like the Ventura songs are “leftovers” from the Oxnard sessions or anything. This is shaping up to be yet another fine Anderson .Paak album, and Coachella will likely see the live debuts of at least a handful of its songs. Not to mention, Paak’s live shows are an unmissable experience no matter what his setlist is like. He sings, raps, and drums, and he’s genuinely great at all three. It’s not every day you see an artist who’s an arena-ready frontman and a beastly drummer, but Anderson .Paak is that artist.
APHEX TWIN
The legendary electronic musican has only played the U.S. twice in the past 11 years (Day For Night festival in 2016 and Coachella 2008), and the only U.S. shows he has scheduled this year are Coachella and a Brooklyn one-off (which is his first NYC show since the ’90s and sold out instantly), so needless to say, the chance to see him is super rare and not to miss. Aphex Twin basically needs no introduction, but if you aren’t familiar and you’re excited for just about any of the electronic acts on this year’s Coachella lineup (from Diplo to Bassnectar to Zedd to Gesaffelstein and beyond), you owe it to yourself to catch Aphex Twin too. He’s been making some of the best electronic music around for over 25 years, from the classic Selected Ambient Works 85–92 to last year’s Collapse EP, and even his earliest work still sounds timeless (a rare feat for any artist, but especially an electronic one).
BAD BUNNY
When the Coachella lineup was announced, Bad Bunny’s debut album X 100PRE was only a few days old, but now that it’s been out in the world for almost four months, it’s clear that Bad Bunny is one of 2019’s definitive artists. The Puerto Rican trap artist was already tearing up the Latin charts and getting nominated for Latin Grammys before X 100PRE came out, but now he’s an undeniable force who transcends language barriers and X 100PRE is an AOTY-list contender. It goes from trap to R&B to even pop punk (on the blink-182-influenced “Tenemos Que Hablar”), and these are songs that are sure to be crowdpleasers on a big stage like Coachella’s.
BURNA BOY
In the time since Coachella’s lineup was announced, Nigerian Afro-fusion artist Burna Boy released the new single “Dangote” and a collaborative EP with LA electronic duo DJDS, Steel & Copper. With all this great new music out in the world, we’re even more excited to see Burna Boy, who was already one of the most intriguing artists on the lineup. From the Afrobeat vibes of last year’s great Outside to the more US-style electronic rap vibes of Steel & Copper, Burna Boy cannot be pigeonholed, and it’s easy to see why huge artists like Drake and Lily Allen are taking notice.
THE INTERRUPTERS
There’s no punk on Coachella this year and there’s even less ska-punk, but it’s 2019 so that’s not surprising at all. Ska-punk is almost entirely absent within mainstream music, except for one band bringing it back in a very big way: The Interrupters. Their 2018 album Fight the Good Fight was one of our favorite punk albums of 2018, and it also made them the first female-fronted ska band to score an an alternative radio hit since No Doubt. The hit is “She’s Kerosene,” which was one of the catchiest songs released in 2018 regardless of genre, and just about every other song on Fight the Good Fight is the same kind of catchy, upbeat, good-spirited song. (And this year they scored another alternative hit, “Gave You Everything.”) When you’re at a big fest, you need to see some truly fun bands, and The Interrupters’ shows are all about fun. They’re the kind of band where you just can’t help but smile and move your feet. And if you know the words (which, for this band, tend to stick with you after just a couple listens), The Interrupters’ songs are built for singalongs.
KACEY MUSGRAVES
We already knew that Kacey Musgraves — who made one of our favorite albums of 2018 — would be putting on one of our most anticipated Coachella sets back when the lineup was announced, but the excitement for Kacey has managed to keep rising since then. She’s fresh off winning the Grammy for Album of the Year and putting on memorable Grammy performances, we recently witnessed her tour and her live show is better than ever, and she’s been doing super fun things live like covering “I Will Survive” with Natalie Prass and covering “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” with Hayley Williams. Hopefully she’s got even more surprises in store for Coachella, and even if she doesn’t bring out any guests, she’s sure to sound phenomenal.
LIZZO
Just a few days after Coachella’s lineup was announced, Lizzo released what is still one of the most infectious singles of the year, “Juice” (which was also memorably used in the Broad City finale). She later revealed that the song would be on her new album Cuz I Love You (along with a Missy Elliott collab), and that album — which is currently one of our most anticipated releases — will drop during weekend two of Coachella. Lizzo’s live shows have been energetic from the start, and now that her career is hitting its highest peak yet, we can’t wait to see what she brings to the Coachella stage this weekend.
ROSALÍA
Rosalía came into 2019 swinging after releasing one of our favorite albums of 2018, and she’s only done more exciting things since. Her collaboration with James Blake is one of the best parts of James Blake’s new album, and her new J Balvin collaboration is one of her most likable bangers yet. (With J Balvin also playing Coachella, our fingers are crossed for an on-stage collaboration.) We also now know that Coachella falls in the midst of Rosalía’s first proper North American headlining tour, and if you’re wondering how high the anticipation for that tour is, consider that both nights at NYC’s Webster Hall quickly sold out. She’s already on the fourth line from the top on Coachella’s poster, and we suspect she’ll be much higher the next time she plays this fest.
TAME IMPALA
When Tame Impala were announced as Coachella headliners, we hoped it meant we’d be getting their long-awaited new album this year, and just a couple weeks ago they finally released a new song, “Patience,” and then played another new song on SNL, “Borderline.” We still don’t know any real info about the album, but will we find out during or right before Coachella? Will they play more new songs live, or maybe even surprise-release something this week? We really have no idea what to expect, but with two new enjoyable songs out in the world, Tame Impala currently have us at the edges of our seats, waiting to find out what move they make next.
YG
After Nipsey Hussle’s tragic and untimely passing, we learned that Nipsey’s “Fuck Donald Trump” collaborator YG had planned to surprise-release a new album before Coachella but pushed it back out of respect for Nipsey. No word on when he’ll end up releasing it, but maybe he’ll still take the opportunity to preview a new song at Coachella, and if anyone on the lineup is equipped to give Nipsey a proper tribute at this festival, it’s YG. We can’t know for sure that he will, but our eyes will be on his set this year regardless and he’s sure to put on a killer show either way.
NEXT: Coachella 2019: 15 lower-poster artists we’re excited for
