Surprise acts rule Coachella – Magic & cheers

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INDIO, United States, April 18, (AFP): The Coachella music festival is famous for its surprises, and the latest edition included one of the more uncommon — an appearance, although remotely, of a presidential candidate. Senator Bernie Sanders showed up late Saturday on the screen of the main stage in the California desert of the leading US music festival, bringing cheers to the mostly young crowd — the left-wing candidate’s main support base.

Sanders was offering a brief introduction to the set by Run the Jewels, a project of Atlanta rapper Killer Mike who is a prominent supporter of the candidate.

The senator, who has defied predictions by waging a tough challenge to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, said that Killer Mike’s “depth of passion — his knowledge and commitment to community — is an inspiration to me and I value his friendship immensely.”

Support

Sanders backers are hoping to use Coachella, which brings 180,000 people over two consecutive weekends, to register voters and otherwise rally support.

Sanders supporters waved signs and pictures, including one of the senator cuddling a kitten, as Run the Jewels put on a set that included “Early,” a powerful critique of police brutality.

Fellow rapper Ice Cube later performed separately to a packed Coachella crowd.

Ice Cube’s former group N.W.A. sent shockwaves through much of white America when it released the song in 1988 and the rapper suggested that an officer at Coachella asked him not to play it, leading to his defiance.

Ice Cube during his set brought out fellow Los Angeles-area rapper Snoop Dogg as well as fellow N.W.A. members DJ Yella and MC Ren.

Notably absent was N.W.A. member Dr Dre, who has gone on to become a multimillionaire Apple executive. He appeared with his bandmates for an induction this month into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but Dr Dre has hesitated to join reunion performances.

Guns N’ Roses, the headliner Saturday at Coachella amid a reunion between singer Axl Rose and guitarist Slash, invited onto stage AC/DC guitarist Angus Young for his Australian band’s hit “Whole Lotta Rosie.”

The appearance came hours after AC/DC announced that Rose would become the band’s singer, at least temporarily, after frontman Brian Johnson developed hearing problems.

Guests

The British electronic duo Disclosure brought out two prominent guests, Sam Smith and Lorde, who won Grammys for their respective breakthrough songs “Stay With Me” and “Royals.”

Kesha made a rare surprise appearance at Coachella on Saturday night, giving an emotional performance in the midst of her legal battle with music producer Dr Luke.

Kesha appeared near the end of EDM producer Zedd’s set at the Outdoor Stage, dressed in all black. Together, Kesha and Zedd performed the title track of Zedd’s 2015 LP, “True Colors.”

The singer did not speak to the crowd directly, but the lyrics of the song seemed to send a clear message that she wouldn’t be backing down against Dr Luke with Kesha showing off her impressive, raw pipes, as thousands of festival-goers in the crowd were captivated by her powerful vocals.

“I won’t apologize for the fire in my eyes,” she sang. “Let me show you my true colors.”

Rumors had swirled for weeks that Kesha would appear at the surprise-heavy festival, and she fueled speculation with several Instagram posts on Saturday teasing fans.

Meanwhile, Calvin Harris brought out Rihanna during his Sunday night performance at Coachella.

Rihanna, who wasn’t scheduled to appear, surprised the thousands in the crowd, performing her hit song “We Found Love,” which she released with Harris in 2011.

Rihanna sang from a stage set up in the middle of the crowd, rather than the main stage that Harris was DJing on. After she wrapped singing, she yelled “take it away Calvin” and walked down the stairs of the tall platform so that she could stealthily exit the very crowded audience.

This year’s Coachella marked the second time Rihanna joined Harris to sing “We Found Love,” following her 2012 surprise cameo at the desert festival. That year, Harris performed in the Sahara tent, rather than the large Main Stage where he headlined the 2016 fest. Harris’ set was the only time Rihanna appeared as a performer at Coachella this weekend, though she was spotted at the Neon Carnival party Saturday night where she was photographed with Leonardo DiCaprio.

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