The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is a two-weekend, three-day festival that has been held annually at the Empire Polo Club at Indio, California since 1999. Artists from many different genres come to Coachella and perform for 45 minutes to an hour throughout these three days. My friends and I went to the first weekend, April 11-13. Of the many artists that performed at the festival, the ones I saw were Zedd, Skrillex, Empire of the Sun, Alesso, Calvin Harris, Ellie Goulding, Flosstradamus, Disclosure, Kid Cudi, Krewella, RL Grime, Lana Del Rey, Carnage, Outkast, and Martin Garrix. Everyday, we would arrive at the festival at around 2 in the afternoon, and walk from stage to stage watching different artists perform different types of music. The festival would end at around 1 in the morning. I went to Coachella for a variety of reasons. I went to Coachella two years ago and loved it. Not only was the line up absolutely amazing this year, but also my friends and I planned to make Coachella our senior trip and one of our last memories of high school together. I had saved up all my money, and my parents promised to let me go because it was my senior year.

In November of 1993, Pearl Jam performed at the Empire Polo Club in front of 25,000 fans, which established its ability to hold large-scaled events. Six years later, on October 9 and October 10, the first Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was held. Not that many people attended this event and they lost money. However, the following year they decided to try again. Progressively as years went by, the festival became well known throughout the world and the crowds began to grow. At this music festival, people bond through common interests in music, fashion, and through the music alone. I wanted to experience Coachella again, knowing what to expect, and see what I could get out of it. I wanted to discover different types of music and the experience music festival culture. I was curious as to why people spent so much money on these festivals and I wanted to see if I would have a different experience the second time.

By attending this event, I was able to spend time and enjoy the company of my good friends. Not only did I spend time with the people I came with, but I also met up with friends that I don’t see everyday and go to school with. I noticed and really liked the fashion of Coachella. Flowers, headbands, high-waisted shorts, floral pants, crop tops, maxi-dresses, bralettes, and high top converse are all common types of clothing items worn at Coachella. Girls wear white daisies in their hairs, on their shoes, and on their clothes. Girls, including myself, put glitter and shiny stickers on the corners of their eyes. Most of the men at Coachella wore board shorts, sunglasses, and hats. People also painted their faces with unique designs and had henna tattoos. People’s love for music is shared through this event. Although styles and tastes may be different, the love for music is an undeniable feeling that holds people together. A lot of Coachella’s culture reflects “hippies”, a countercultural movement that rejected the mores of mainstream American life.

I have a completely different outlook on the artists I saw perform. Seeing artists perform live really made me appreciate music and how important it is to our daily lives. At Coachella, I was able to enjoy music while also gaining a deeper understanding of the artists that performed it. I discovered genres of music that I would have never imagined listening to. I learned a lot about music festival culture and how people are connected through their love for music. The feeling of my body and ears inhaling the different types of music was a life-changing, indescribable feeling. It was like a natural body high I got just from listening to good music and being surrounded with people I love. I learned that I should broaden the genres of music that I listen to. I learned that I could coexist in the life of Coachella. I survived off the “hippie” food sold there, walked around in the heat, spent a lot of time camping, and survived a dust storm. Not everyone was able to enjoy and “survive” Coachella. People were complaining about the heat, dehydration, etc. but I was able to embrace and enjoy the fact that all those negative components are just parts of the culture of music festivals.

Coming from a multi-cultural background, it was easy for me to be more flexible and understand this culture I had never known of before. Some of my friends had a hard time understanding the music festival culture as I did the first time I went to Coachella. Being able to understand this unique culture made me realize that I can understand other cultures and adapt to other people’s different ways of life. Instead of narrowing my options and only exploring cultures I am familiar with, I feel like I am able to explore other cultures and learn how they work.