Coachella 2019
Aria Miller
Aria Miller
Instagram feeds are filled with glammed out celebrities and wanna be influencers as the first weekend of Coachella just took place from April 12th to the 14th. It claims itself as a music and arts festival that gets tons of artists to perform for the hundreds of thousands of people that attend. Some big headliners this year were Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Jaden Smith, Kacey Musgraves, and Tame Impala.
But this music festival also becomes an unintended fashion show, with artists and celebrities showing up and showing out with the best fits they can come up with. If Coachella is not posted all over their timeline then are they really an Instagram model? It is kind of like a Instagram milestone now. General admission tickets start at $429 and can go up to $504 if a shuttle is added. The V.I.P. tickets start at $999 and can go higher if a shuttle and or tent is added.
High school freshman, Riley Smith, said, “No [I wouldn’t want to go] because it seems so overpriced and overhyped. Like people go there to take pictures and say they went, but did they really enjoy themselves?”
Smith continued to say, “If I ever would go it would be to see Tame Impala. I play them all the time. [Coachella became big] because it branded itself as some fancy, socialite festival, but I don’t really care for it.”
Another high school student, Erwin Lucas, said, “Billie Eilish is probably the most attracting headline to me. I watched some of the livestreams [on YouTube]. It kinda made me feel like I was there. I guess sometimes [Coachella] can get superficial. Everyone there is worried about pictures, how they look, and making sure everyone knows they’re there.”
Lucas also commented, “Watching Billie’s livestream was really fun. She messed up a couple of times, but I still enjoyed it. She’s my fav.”
The founder of Coachella, Philip Anschutz, is the owner of AEG. He has been found to give large amounts of money to the Alliance Defending Freedom, National Christian Foundation, and the Family Research Council. It is said that the National Christian Foundation funds groups that aggressively attack LGBTQ Americans and try to silence the community. The Foundation and Family Research Council is a conservative pro-life and pro-heterosexual marriage organization and have been found to say hateful comments about those that are a part of the LGBTQ community.
To this, high school student Adam Brown, responded, “It’s just sad that still in 2019 we’re dealing with the issue of hate. Personally I would boycott against [Coachella] because I don’t wanna put my money towards something hateful. Even though [people of the LGBTQ community] attended and performed, it doesn’t change the fact that the founder is homophobic.”
With every big corporation in America’s capitalist society there is usually some underlying problematic issue. As this news came out last year, and is being pushed out again this year, many of the normal festival goers have made second thoughts about buying their ticket. Do they go and enjoy themselves hoping things will soon change? Or should they boycott and hope they make a change themselves? As Coachella seems to get more backlash each year for the controversial founder and all the issues with the festival itself, its future is uncertain.
But this music festival also becomes an unintended fashion show, with artists and celebrities showing up and showing out with the best fits they can come up with. If Coachella is not posted all over their timeline then are they really an Instagram model? It is kind of like a Instagram milestone now. General admission tickets start at $429 and can go up to $504 if a shuttle is added. The V.I.P. tickets start at $999 and can go higher if a shuttle and or tent is added.
High school freshman, Riley Smith, said, “No [I wouldn’t want to go] because it seems so overpriced and overhyped. Like people go there to take pictures and say they went, but did they really enjoy themselves?”
Smith continued to say, “If I ever would go it would be to see Tame Impala. I play them all the time. [Coachella became big] because it branded itself as some fancy, socialite festival, but I don’t really care for it.”
Another high school student, Erwin Lucas, said, “Billie Eilish is probably the most attracting headline to me. I watched some of the livestreams [on YouTube]. It kinda made me feel like I was there. I guess sometimes [Coachella] can get superficial. Everyone there is worried about pictures, how they look, and making sure everyone knows they’re there.”
Lucas also commented, “Watching Billie’s livestream was really fun. She messed up a couple of times, but I still enjoyed it. She’s my fav.”
The founder of Coachella, Philip Anschutz, is the owner of AEG. He has been found to give large amounts of money to the Alliance Defending Freedom, National Christian Foundation, and the Family Research Council. It is said that the National Christian Foundation funds groups that aggressively attack LGBTQ Americans and try to silence the community. The Foundation and Family Research Council is a conservative pro-life and pro-heterosexual marriage organization and have been found to say hateful comments about those that are a part of the LGBTQ community.
To this, high school student Adam Brown, responded, “It’s just sad that still in 2019 we’re dealing with the issue of hate. Personally I would boycott against [Coachella] because I don’t wanna put my money towards something hateful. Even though [people of the LGBTQ community] attended and performed, it doesn’t change the fact that the founder is homophobic.”
With every big corporation in America’s capitalist society there is usually some underlying problematic issue. As this news came out last year, and is being pushed out again this year, many of the normal festival goers have made second thoughts about buying their ticket. Do they go and enjoy themselves hoping things will soon change? Or should they boycott and hope they make a change themselves? As Coachella seems to get more backlash each year for the controversial founder and all the issues with the festival itself, its future is uncertain.
