Maybe God is a woman: Ariana Grande is the fourth woman ever to headline Coachella

BY EMMA HUERTA

As each new year brings a variety of new music, many music festivals occur to cater to specific genres and trends popular among the masses. As soon as the lineups are out, fans often scramble to get tickets in order to see their all-time favorite artists perform.

This is the case with arguably one of the most anticipated festivals of the year— Coachella— which released its performer lineup via social media on January 3.

As the name implies, Coachella takes place in Coachella Valley, which is in Indio, California. The event is scheduled to occur on two weekends, from April 12 to April 14 and from April 19 to April 21. Both weekends feature the same artists.

The newly released list was full of musicians who all had one major thing in common: their resurgence in popularity during the last year. Some of the listed stars included teen-singer phenomenon Billie Eilish, rapper Juice WRLD, Norwegian band boy pablo and Hispanic rapper Bad Bunny. Coachella also listed legendary rapper Childish Gambino, indie rock band Tame Impala and pop singer Ariana Grande as its headliners. Grande is the fourth woman ever to headline the festival.

The only other women who have headlined Coachella have been Icelandic singer Björk, pop singer Lady Gaga and popular R&B and pop singer Beyoncé. Björk headlined the event in 2002 and 2007, Lady Gaga headlined it in 2017 and Beyoncé headlined last year in 2018.

The 25-year-old made history as the youngest performer to headline the major festival.

Not only did the announcement of Ariana Grande headlining Coachella represent increased female recognition in the arts, but the 25-year-old also made history as the youngest performer to headline the major festival.

Ariana Grande had many major feats last year, with the release of her fourth studio album “Sweetener” and the hit break-up song “thank u, next.” The video for the single also helped Grande surge in popularity, as it was incredibly prominent in pop culture for its spinoff on popular movies, like “Mean Girls,” and celebrity cameos, like Kris Jenner. This all ultimately led to a lot of recognition— specifically in prestigious music award shows— for Grande’s grand achievements throughout the year, including receiving Billboard’s 2018 Woman of the Year award. Evidently, Grande’s immense talents, which were highly showcased last year, were what earned her the opportunity to perform for thousands of people at Coachella 2019.

Besides the star-studded lineup every year, Coachella is also well-known for the distinct fashion trends that emerge from its attendees, as well as celebrities that attend the festival. Past events have had reality stars like Kendall and Kylie Jenner and actors like KJ Apa in the crowd. Such celebrities showcased the most popular clothing trends at the festival, including holographic, boho and flat-out bizarre outfits.

From fresh new fashion trends to awesome music, all of Coachella’s unique traits are what make it such an amazing and sought-after experience each year, and what make the festival different from other events of the sort. Hopefully, taking all of these characteristics into account, Coachella 2019 will be the same if not even more legendary, exhilarating and memorable for those who are lucky enough to attend.

Photo courtesy of Christopher Polk and Getty Images