Apr 11, 2022 [[read-time]] minute read
For the tenth year, YouTube is returning to the desert to give music fans around the world front row access to one of the world’s most coveted music festivals, Coachella, with its exclusive two-weekend livestream. Wherever you are watching from - desktop, mobile, living room or the YouTube Music app - everyone is invited to the Empire Polo Club for the return of Coachella, exclusively on YouTube.
Music lovers tuning into the YouTube livestream will get to indulge in a fully immersive experience like never before. Beyond the live performances from today’s most sought after artists and rising stars, fans can enjoy intimate artist interviews, YouTube Shorts behind-the-scenes content and sweepstakes, YouTube Premium pre-parties and more. And for the first time, virtual festival-goers will have the opportunity to purchase exclusive Coachella and artist merchandise via YouTube Shopping and interact with one another in real-time through YouTube’s Live Chat. What’s more, a record of eight advertisers across ten countries have joined in to sponsor this year’s Coachella livestream on YouTube.
This all-inclusive YouTube experience will make for a Coachella fans won’t want to miss!
The livestream program, being co-hosted by Joe Kay, Quenlin Blackwell, Therapy Gecko, and Veronica De La Cruz, starts at 4 PM PST / 7 PM EST on Friday, April 15th and runs through Monday evening, April 18, including replays.
YouTube’s Weekend 1 livestream, sponsored by Verizon and TRESemmé in the U.S., will give music fans across the globe front row seats to groundbreaking performances from their favorite artists when they tune into Coachella’s Official YouTube Channel on any screen (desktop, mobile and living room) and within the YouTube Music app.
Fans tuning in will have their choice of three livestream feeds with different performances airing simultaneously, in addition to exclusive artist interview content being captured live from the festival grounds. The livestream program, being co-hosted by Joe Kay, Therapy Gecko, and Veronica De La Cruz, starts at 4 PM PST / 7 PM EST on Friday, April 15 and runs through Monday evening, April 18, including replays. Tune in reminders can be set now on Coachella’s YouTube Channel.
YouTube’s immersive Coachella Curated livestream experience is back for Coachella’s second weekend. Sponsored by Minions: The Rise of Gru and Tic Tac in the U.S. and hosted by Joe Kay and Veronica De La Cruz, Coachella Curated deep dives into the stories of some of today’s most thrilling artists. From encore performances, to artist commentary, mini-docs and more, the livestream gives fans an opportunity to discover new artists in addition to original content and performances from the artists they know and love on the Coachella bill.
Stay tuned for more details on Coachella Curated coming soon!
This year, YouTube’s presence at the festival online and on the ground is bigger and better than ever with a number of festival-firsts for the platform:
#YouTubeCoachellaSweepstakes
✹ YouTube Shorts and Creator Activations: YouTube Shorts is making a huge splash leading up to the festival and on-site. Several creators are helping to kick off the YouTube Coachella Sweepstakes today, giving fans across the U.S. a chance to win the ultimate prize: a pair of Lifetime Coachella passes in the form of an NFT. The unique opportunity asks fans to create and upload a Short answering the prompt “Who would your dream +1 be if you won Coachella passes for life?” with the hashtag #YouTubeCoachellaSweepstakes. More details can be found here.*
The Shorts adventures will continue at the festival. Six of today’s most exciting creators will “live” at the YouTube Shorts Compound, where they’ll capture their festival experience on their respective YouTube channels. Fans can expect entertaining content from Benoftheweek, Kaiti Yoo, Kirsten Titus, Larray, Lauren Giraldo and Quenlin Blackwell. Dozens more creators are also set to document their festival fun on Shorts, including Alyssa McKay, Gunnar Deatherage, DankScole, Hannah Montoya, Hannah Warling, Milad Mirg, Sydney Morgan and The Beverly Halls, amongst many others!
Custom merch from festival performers Billie Eilish, BROCKHAMPTON and Flume will drop on Saturday, April 16th and be available for purchase the entire day, directly on the livestream watchpage.
✹ Snag Exclusive Merchandise Through YouTube Shopping: For the first time, YouTube Shopping will offer virtual viewers a chance to purchase exclusive merchandise without leaving the livestream. Custom merch from festival performers Billie Eilish, BROCKHAMPTON and Flume will drop on Saturday, April 16th and be available for purchase the entire day, directly on the livestream watchpage. The same set of merch will also be available for purchase the following Saturday during Weekend 2 of the fest. Coachella will also be dropping their own merch collection which will be available for purchase on the watchpage throughout both festival weekends.
✹ A Behind-the-Scenes Celebration of Coachella Fashion: On-site at the YouTube Artist Lounge, YouTube’s Head of Fashion and Beauty, Derek Blasberg, will capture Shorts content and engage in exclusive, one-on-one interviews with artists and creators to talk Coachella fashion, beauty trends and more.
✹ Exclusive YouTube Premium Pre-Parties: YouTube Premium members will have exclusive access to six Premium pre-parties spread across the festival weekends. From Cordae, 88rising and Banda MS during Weekend 1 to Omar Apollo, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and beabadoobee during Weekend 2, the exclusive pre-parties will automatically redirect from the respective artists’ YouTube channel right into their must-see Coachella festival sets.
Additionally, from April 15 to April 25, new users in the U.S. can sign up for YouTube Premium to gain access to these exclusive pre-parties and receive the first three months of the subscription for free.
✹ Building Community Through Live Chat: For the first time, YouTube will feature Live Chat as part of the livestream viewing experience on desktop and the YouTube App. Using pinned chats, virtual attendees can see real time updates from the lineup schedule, to YouTube Shopping merch drops, and more. Coachella channel subscribers can also comment in the Live Chat and interact through polls, creating a community experience for fans worldwide.
YouTube presents "Front Row Coachella"
Global festival-goers can now set tune-in reminders for the Coachella livestream here. By subscribing to Coachella’s Official YouTube channel, fans will have access to up-to-date information on when their favorite artists are streaming live and more throughout the festival.
Fans can also get into the Coachella groove early by turning on YouTube Music and listening to playlists like Coachella 2022: The Lineup, Coachella Legends, Coachella 2022: Next Gen Flex, Desert Mornings, Field Daze, Desert Rising, and Golden Hours, amongst several others. These must-listen playlists capture the magic of Coachella from years past and set the stage for what’s to come from Coachella 2022.
Finally, your front row seat to Coachella won’t be complete without following @YouTube & @YouTubeMusic on Instagram and Twitter where fans can catch all the highlights from Coachella from Shorts content, to live moments and so much more.
See you this weekend, live from the desert 🌴
*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void where prohibited. Open to legal residents of 50 US/DC, 14+ at entry. Minors may require proof of permission to enter. Begins 9 AM PT on 4/7/22; ends 11:59 PM PT on 4/30/22. Limit 1 entry per person. Winner must have a valid, active NFT wallet to receive the prize. See here for full rules and alternate means of entry. Sponsor: Google LLC.