This is the result of a vacation at home and extreme boredom due to extremely bad weather. :)
I don't want to put anyone off Coachella, and especially not Taemin's performance there. But I do have my personal reservations about huge festivals of this kind (including this influencer thing). This is just my personal opinion, which in many aspects agrees with the opinion of the author of the article I linked to in my previous blog post. And this article is just an opinion, too.
Of course, it's difficult for me to form an opinion when I've never personally attended this festival. So I'll call it an 'assessment'.
I consider Coachella a festival where the interest in music takes a bit of a back seat (except for the really big acts). It's not just about music, but also about art, as the name 'Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival' suggests. And Fashion and influencing people. For me festivals of this size, with such a variety of so many different music acts, is a bit 'too much.'
For me, 'less is often more.' Such a large-scale event naturally comes at a price, which is evidently reflected in the exorbitant ticket prices. Can the 'average earner' even afford something like this? Or is it only intended for a certain, privileged audience? People who get sponsored to go to Coachella?
Aside from that: I read that some Taemin fans/Shawols from Korea will be traveling to Coachella to support him.
For Taemin, he will rock it! (I really hope he can rest a bit and that he's in good health!) Coachella will certainly be an opportunity to make him (even) more famous outside of the K-pop community. I'm convinced he'll find new fans. But overall, I don't think his style of music necessarily appeals to the masses (although for me personally, that's a good thing), as he often strikes a somewhat dark tone in his music and lyrics and performances, and that's not everyone's cup of tea, in my opinion. And Taemin sings predominantly in Korean, which isn't to everyone's taste either. If Taemin ever achieves such tremendous success in the US, I sincerely hope no one expects him or what he's doing to change in any way. So, better not even try. :D ;)
Of course, with the large number of different artists from different genres, you can't (or don't want to) support all of them equally. But when I watch an act at a festival, there's always one thing that I think should be maintained, even if I don't know the artist or don't like them that much: respect for the artist(s) on stage, who are doing their best to entertain people. Otherwise, leaving is always a good option for me.
Please support the artists by showing lots of enthusiasm, especially for Taemin. He's such a unique and versatile artist, imo. And a nice, humble person.
I'd actually be interested in some acts of the 2026 lineup, but the US would not be an option for me at the moment, unfortunately.
Justin Bieber and Sabrina Carpenter - nope :), I'm more interested in alternative, indie, and electronic acts. Artists/bands that are particularly interesting to me:
- Of course, Taemin: he'll rock that thing, I'm sure of it! I just hope there won't be any technical or sound issues; I don't think Taemin likes that :))
- Moby: I've loved this man for a long time. Not just for his music, but also for his animal rights activism. Let's go vegan, everyone! :D ;) Anyway, I went there.
- Nine Inch Noize: I don't think I need to say much about this act :)
- Röyksopp, an electronic duo from Norway that I really admire. -
FKA Twigs: British musician, singer, actress, and dancer whose music oscillates between pop, R&B, electronic music, and hyperpop. A very interesting artist, in my opinion.
- Other artists I'm also interested in are Foster The People, The Strokes, Likke Li, Teddy Swims, Iggy Pop, and Katseye. I don't know any of the other artists or don't know them very well.
I would definitely watch Big Bang too, but I'm not a huge fan, although I do like some of their songs. I also liked some of G-Dragon's solo songs, but somehow he's recently lost my sympathy. I think I'll write a separate blog post about that, because there's something about G-Dragon that's really bothering me. Just to say: I have nothing against G-Dragon, I just have reservations about a few things he's done, or rather, used. This has already been discussed, but I think I'd like to add my two cents. :)
By the way: I don't understand why so many people apparently 'hate' Benson Boone. Incidentally, I only thought about the lyrics of 'Bohemian Rhapsody' after posting the song. I was just talking about that Coachella performance (I admit, BR is a very complex piece of music, and maybe the audience there were just standing there thunderstruck out of sheer awe of that performance and of Brian May :D). But I think a lot of people actually didn't know who Brian May was. Maybe they shouldn't just wear the hippie-like fashion of the past (because all that has been done before, including the hairstyles), but maybe also listen to a few songs or bands from the 70s or even the 80s.
Everyone can interpret the song however they want. Incidentally, that's what Freddy Mercury, who wrote and composed this song, said about Bohemian Rhapsody.
"People should listen to the song and form their own opinion based on what the lyrics tell them." Source quote: Andy Davis, Record Collector 167, 1993, Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody
So, please form your own opinion and don't listen so much to the opinions given to you by influencers. :)
In my opinion, this whole 'influencer' thing is almost all about hype. Just as quickly as it's created, it's gone again, and on to the next hype. That's not my thing, i guess i'm too old-school (no, not old! :)).
And here's another example of Bohemian Rhapsody, this time with an interested audience, because they're only there for one band, for THE Queen, and not what feels like 1,564 different artists.
I sometimes feel kind of a 'homesickness' for these kinds of concerts when watching them. The atmosphere, the enthusiasm of the audience, even though I've not been there. :) And no smartphones. :D
For anyone who can afford to go to Coachella 2026: just have fun everyone and don't worry so much about clothes and the perfect bohemian-chic haircut. :) And put away your smartphones. :D
In times like these, I think it's good to take every opportunity to have fun.
Wow, i was really bored. :D
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