Latine Acts Take Over the Coachella 2022 Lineup

After facing two consecutive years of cancellations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Coachella is finally back and with a lineup that has left music fans buzzing across the country. Harry Styles, Ye, and Billie Eilish sit at the top of the list, along with a highly anticipated return from the Swedish House Mafia. Still, many couldn’t help but notice the large number of Latine artists slated to make an appearance at this year’s festival.

Scheduled to take place over two weekends between April 15-24, the festival will feature some of the biggest names in Latine music, including mega-stars like Karol G and Anitta. But this isn’t the first time the iconic festival has featured Latin American talent. Its latest edition in 2019 saw major performances by J Balvin, Bad Bunny, and Los Tucanes De Tijuana, making it a big year for Latine representation on the festival circuit. There’s also no denying that Latine music has had a big crossover moment in the last few years, but seeing it gain traction on the major festival landscape signals a new level of mainstream success. 

Coachella 2022 will feature 18 Latine artists that span a wide range of genres, including indie rock, pop, reggaetón, folk, R&B, and regional Mexican music. Friday’s lineup includes scheduled performances by regional Mexican band Grupo Firme, as well as Omar Apollo, The Marías, Princess Nokia, Ela Minus, Jean Dawson, Giselle Woo and the Night Owls, and The Martinez Brothers to round out the list. The following day includes performances by Brazilian sensations Anitta and Pablo Vittar, Cuco, Nicki Nicole, Ed Maverick, Inner Wave, Layla Benitez, and Alaina Castillo. And last but certainly not least, Sunday is set to close out the weekend with performances by Karol G, Banda MS, Jessie Reyez, Chicano Batman, Natanael Cano, and Nathy Peluso. 

The diversity of Latine talent on this year’s Coachella lineup tells us a lot about the direction that Latine music is going in. Not only is the festival providing a platform for big names and up-and-coming artists alike, but it also demonstrates how American music fans are finally embracing the full range of our musical heritage. Nowadays, genres like banda, corridos, and folk can share a stage with more mainstream styles like raggaetón and rock. Latin indie pop, funk, electronic music, and psychedelic rock are also getting a moment in the spotlight in Indio this year and growing in popularity with both English and Spanish speaking audiences. 

So regardless of whether we can snag a ticket to this year’s Coachella festival, we can at least agree that the large-scale festival reflects the evolving landscape of Latine music. If you’re interested in attending this year’s long-awaited festivities, the pre-sale for Weekend 2 of Coachella starts today.