LINEUP 2016: Coachella’s lineup evokes mixed emotions from anticipating fans.
By Avelina Maier, Staff Writer
Come mid-April, the youth of America will descend upon Indio, California for the annual Coachella music festival, where they will wear flowers in their hair, pay 27 dollars for drinks and peer into the VIP area to observe washed-up reality television stars swill bad vodka. It’s a great two weekends for fashion, for networking, for Instagramming. But let’s not forget the music! The 2016 lineup was released two weeks ago, and as always, it’s a confounding mish-mosh of up-and-comers, reunited superstar acts, and bands whose names look like typographical errors.
Coachella’s lineup never fails to elicit a barrage of negativity and outrage — it’s a given. This year, however, fans seemed especially hostile. Whether they were upset about the absence of Radiohead, or disdainful about the inclusion of Calvin Harris as a headliner, fans were riled up over plenty of things after Monday’s announcement.
The 160 artists booked to play the event the weekends of April 15-17 and April 22-24 fill nearly every section of a record store –hard rock in the form of a reunited Guns N’ Roses, hip-hop with Ice Cube, gospel with the great Mavis Staples and even jazz with saxophonist Kamasi Washington. With Coachella embarking on its 17th year, the lineup is held up to even higher standards.
In many ways Coachella has become the festival where artists can make their big break. A single awe-inspiring performance on those Polo Grounds can be enough to cement a musician’s legitimacy into the industry. This year, Goldenvoice (Coachella’s festival sponsor) has given that chance to performers such as Zhu, Bob Moses, KSHMR, Lido and Rufus Du Sol — artists who have rightfully earned their shot at entering the upper echelon of electronic music.
The return of LCD Soundsystem is reason enough to get excited about this year’s lineup. After a five year hiatus, Coachella will serve as a huge reunion for the beloved rock-electronic act. 90’s dance acts like Underworld and St Germain have also received noteworthy spots, while progressive house legends Sasha and John Digweed will make their return to Indio. On the topic of returns, one of the biggest headliners on the lineup consists of the one and only Guns N’ Roses. Guns N’ Roses will perform Saturday night at both weekends of the Coachella Music & Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., set for April 15-17 and April 22-24. This will be the first time the Rose-Slash-McKagen trio will perform together since since July 17, 1993 at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires. Their reunion at this bohemian-esque music festival will definitely be an eye opener for many and a sentimental one at that.
When it comes to female performers, as pointed out by The LA Times, this year’s lineup boasts more female-led performers than ever before: at least 26 by their count. From Canada’s Grimes, to the return of Australian pop icon Sia, there’s plenty of powerful women on the lineup providing a more well-balanced affair compared to previous years.
With the eclectic performances scheduled this year, some people say that this year’s lineup doesn’t come close to 2015’s. Last year Coachella fans saw amazing headlining sets from Drake, The Weeknd, Jack White, AC|DC and Florence the Machine, and while this year’s headliners are great, they just don’t compare to 2015. With no rap or hip-hop headliners, despite being the biggest (or one of the biggest) genres in music, the reunions are the central focus in 2016. While huge artists like Drake and The Weeknd headlined last year, with supporting sets from Vic Mensa, Lil B, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Action Bronson, Tyler the Creator and more, this year has no A-list rappers on the lineup. We will surely be excited for Run The Jewels (who performed at Coachella last year), G-Eazy, A$AP Rocky, Vince Staples and more, but on the whole, there is not a major rap presence at Coachella this year.
The overall opinion of this year’s lineup may vary depending on one’s specific music taste. Don’t like rap? Well then this is the perfect lineup. Vice versa….maybe not so much. Unfortunately the mixed emotions stay mixed on this year’s set list for the festival. “As a fanatic of rap, the lineup isn’t an ideal for me, Coachella isn’t just about the music, it’s about the memories and friends! Good or bad lineup, the festival is always a great time!” Arya Sherafat (10) noted.