Stagecoach 2026: Post Malone, Lainey Wilson and the wild weekend of surprises and a wind evacuation

No stranger to Stagecoach as a solo country act, Darius Rucker brought his roots-rock band Hootie & the Blowfish to the desert festival on Sunday night. I talked with him a couple of hours before the group’s set.

If there’s one man to speak to the overlap between rock bands who emerged in the 1990s and country music — a prevalent theme at Stagecoach this year — it’s you. So what’s up?

On Day 3 of Stagecoach, the Empire Polo Club in Indio was primed for one more big Western outing before the festival rode off into the sunset.

After Saturday’s excitement with the festival evacuating attendees due to wind, things were still rocking before the gates even opened — though it was mostly caused by Mother Nature. The morning started with a rumble when a magnitude 3.4 earthquake hit 10 miles from Cabazon at 8:44 a.m.

Best known as a songwriter with credits on hits like Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ’Em” and Kendrick Lamar’s “Luther,” Ink performed a set of her own soul-meets-country music Sunday afternoon at Stagecoach. I talked to the Atlanta native after she came offstage.

Your new single, “Mine (In Love with You),” interpolates the classic “Don’t Let Go (Love)” by En Vogue. Was that song a big one for you?

Yeah, man, from the “Set It Off” soundtrack — that was just one of them ones. I didn’t mean to do it like that, it just came out when I was freestyling on the microphone. I’ve never used a sample or an interpolation in my music, but it was just so fitting and natural that I had to keep it.

You remember seeing “Set It Off”?

What? Of course! I used to watch it all the time. They had me wanting to rob banks when I was a kid. I told Queen Latifah that when I met her. She’s so cool — one of my inspirations for real.

Will you try to follow her from music into acting?

I don’t gotta try to be actor — I am an actor. I’ve been acting a fool for a long time.

You put out an album last year called “Big Buskin’.” Name a go-to song from your busking days.

[Sings “Wild Ones” by Flo Rida featuring Sia]

What kind of business was the worst to do your thing in front of?

One time I busked in front of the prison. It actually went better than you thought, because the bus driver had put me off the bus for playing the guitar. But at Lenox [Square] mall [in Atlanta], the security cops was hating on me bad — they banned me for three years. I said: When I get some money, I’ll never shop at Lenox — I’m going across the street to Phipps [Plaza] for the designer s—.

Almost exactly a year after he closed out Coachella in 2025, Post Malone returned to Indio’s Empire Polo Club late Sunday to headline the final night of this past weekend’s Stagecoach festival.

“Who’s f— thirsty this evening, ladies and gentlemen?” he asked not long into the show — Malone’s way of introducing his song “Pour Me a Drink,” for which he opened a can of his beloved Bud Light by smashing it against his head.

Dressed in jeans, a jean jacket and a denim vest, Post Malone began his headlining set Sunday night at Stagecoach in a characteristically jovial mood, asking the crowd who’s thirsty then cracking a beer against his head as he sang “Pour Me a Drink.” Added the singer and rapper in the wake of Saturday’s inclement weather: “I hope everyone’s safe and warm and out of the wind.”

Hootie & the Blowfish is known for a good time. The band’s pop-rock hits are infectious. Singer Darius Rucker found fame with a solo country career and has played Stagecoach before. On Sunday night, the band played its biggest hits, including “Hold My Hand,” “Time” and “Let Her Cry,” but they also made a political statement.

Other notable moments of the set included a rollicking version of “Wagon Wheel” that had the crowd singing and dancing along, covers of REM’s “Losing My Religion” and Led Zeppelin’s “Hey Hey What Can I Do” and the massive Hootie hit “Only Wanna Be With You” with a funk break for a mid-song cover of Kool & the Gang’s “Get Down On It.”

But the highlight of the performance was the end. The band closed its set with a cover of Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth” before bringing out Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Flavor Flav to join them and also to perform “Fight the Power.”

It seemed rather poignant to have the moment at the conservative-leaning Stagecoach, a festival where organizers had to ban Confederate flag gear a few years back, but hopefully the moment wasn’t lost on the partying masses. “With everything going on in the world these days I think it’s a good place for the song,” Rucker told the Times prior to his band’s performance.

However pop-minded Stagecoach has become in the past five to 10 years, the festival still holds down its centrist-country roots, as Brooks & Dunn showed Sunday night with a rowdy yet polished main-stage performance that featured plenty of the duo’s down-the-middle hits — “Brand New Man,” “Red Dirt Road,” “Neon Moon” — and concluded with a rendition of “Only in America” that had the two veteran musicians positioned before a line of proud police officers.

Between Counting Crows, Bush and Third Eye Blind, all ‘90s alt artists booked for the sunset set on the Mustang Stage throughout Stagecoach 2026, the latter drew the biggest crowd on Sunday evening with a mix of hits that hit the best of the band’s first two records.

“Never Let You Go,” “Graduate” and “Jumper” were highlights early in the set before closing with “Semi-Charmed Life” and “How’s It Gonna Be.”

“Thank you for loving us,” singer Stephan Jenkins said. “We didn’t know how this was gonna go.”

He need not have worried.

Stagecoach has always been full of branded pop-ups — well before the corporations invaded Coachella — but this year is all about the celebrity bar.

Sydney Sweeney has a pop-up bar on the festival grounds for her Syrn lingerie line that offers karaoke, magnetic darts, and, of course, booze, near other brand booths like Arby’s and Alaska Airlines.

Shaboozey’s pop-up saloon takes a little more work to find. Tucked into the 12 Peaks area, which is general admission during Stagecoach — it’s VIP-only during Coachella — Cherie Lee’s is built to look like an old West saloon on the outside. You know you’re in the right place when you find an old-timey “Wanted” poster with the image of the “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” singer out front. You walk down a dimly lit hallway (honestly, it gives Big Thunder Mountain line vibes), and through swinging saloon doors into cozy room.

They were giving out black bandannas with a drawing of Cherie Lee’s saloon emblazoned with Shaboozey “The Outlaw Cherie Lee,” the name of his forthcoming concept album.

There’s a tag on the bandanna that will allow you to give them your information in order to hear some of the new music.

Like Sweeney’s pop-up, this saloon isn’t totally for show—there are selected premixed cocktails available. And when I was there, there was someone dressed in old timey garb playing a banjo.

Newport Beach residents Coco McLeroy, left, collides with Kayla Mascolina while playing the Inflatable gladiator camping game at the “Stagecoach Babes” campsite at the RV Resort.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

See more photos from Stagecoach 2026.

Once music fans file out of the Empire Polo Grounds in Indio at the end of the Stagecoach and Coachella festivals, the work begins for charitable organizations who turn the discarded clutter — more than 24 tons of it strewn throughout the 642-acre property — into a benefit for the local needy.

Among the things left behind on the festival grounds are clothing, camping gear, dry foods and other goods that local community organizations pick up by the truckload to help benefit the low-income and unhoused people they serve.

After back-to-back appearances at both weekends of Coachella, David Lee Roth popped out Saturday at Stagecoach to sing Van Halen’s “Jump” with Teddy Swims for the third (and final?) time. To discuss what he called his “three-peat,” I caught up later with the 71-year-old singer, who wore a bedazzled jacket and a leather vest.

Have you bought property in Indio? Do you just live here now?

Third Eye Blind plays Stagecoach’s Mustang Stage at 6:45 p.m. Sunday, April 26.

Stephan Jenkins agrees to bookings for music festivals only if his band Third Eye Blind can perform at a certain time.

Goldenvoice is warning Stagecoach attendees to pay attention today.

An alert went out on the Stagecoach app just before 2 p.m. that read “Hold on to your hats. We will experience winds throughout the day. Stay tuned on the app and stage screens for updates. Thank you for your attention and enjoy the festival.”

Hopefully the winds won’t be so bad that we are evacuated again.

As the 2026 Stagecoach Country Music Festival rides off into the sunset, enjoy the last day of the performances from the comfort of your home. The festival will be livestreaming most of the performances, so you’ll be able to watch Post Malone and Warren Zeiders from the couch. You can also take a trip down memory lane with Hootie & the Blowfish, Brooks & Dunn and Third Eye Blind. Close out the festival by watching Loud Luxury, DJ Pauly D and Ludacris onstage.

The festival will be livestreamed on Amazon Music, Prime Video and Twitch. On Sirius XM’s The Highway (Channel 56), you can listen in to exclusive interviews and live performances. Their station Y’Allternative will also be covering the festival on Sunday.

Gavin Rossdale brought his band Bush to Stagecoach on Saturday — one of several groups at the festival this weekend with indelible rock hits from the 1990s. The 60-year-old, who recently premiered a television cooking show, also put in an appearance alongside Billy Bob Thornton, Wynonna Judd and Gavin Adcock at the fever dream that is Guy Fieri’s Smokehouse. I caught up with him between the two engagements.

This has gotta be your first Stagecoach.

We went back for a second day of Stagecoach and spent most of the day holding on to our hats. Before strong winds resulted in the short-lived nighttime postponement and evacuation of the festival, Day 2 had plenty of gusto that carried us through the afternoon and evening, including sets from Bush and Teddy Swims along with some high-octane cooking with Guy Fieri. When crowds were called back after the wind-related fiasco that pushed everything back for headliner Lainey Wilson and caused Journey and Riley Green to cancel their performances, fans who returned still got to witness Wilson triumph over the elements and get down and dirty with Pitbull at Diplo’s Honky Tonk. Luckily the unexpected havoc didn’t blow away all the good vibes. Here are the best, worst and windiest from Day 2.

Guy Fieri features his latest smokehouse dish during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival.

(Evan Schaben / For The Times)

After yesterday’s excitement with the festival evacuating attendees due to wind, I am hoping things are a little calmer to wrap up Stagecoach 2026.

The morning started with a rumble when a magnitude 3.4 earthquake happened 10 miles from Cabazon at 8:44 a.m.

A wind advisory is still in effect until 5 p.m., so a mask/bandanna is a must. Winds are expected to be 20-30 mph with gusts of up to 45 mph. The temperatures are also cooler today, with a high of 76, but it is very sunny.

Tonight we have Post Malone headlining and judging by all of the guests he brought out when he did Stagecoach two years ago, we are gearing up for a surprise today.

The livestream kicks off on Amazon Music at 3 p.m. Pacific and you can watch Posty, Brooks & Dunn, Hootide & the Blowfish and more.

Lainey Wilson didn’t seem too worried about the high winds that temporarily shut down Stagecoach on Saturday night.

Headlining the festival’s main stage after an hour-long delay — during which fans were ordered to evacuate Indio’s Empire Polo Club before being allowed back in — Wilson looked out at the crowd in front of her and said of the unplanned break: “I hope y’all sat in your cars and drank some tequila.”

With another Coachella in the books, Indio’s Empire Polo Club turns to country music this weekend for the annual Stagecoach festival. The Times will be on-site from Friday to Sunday to bring you an up-close view of what’s happening in the desert.

Billy Bob Thornton & The Boxmasters performs on the Palomino Stage.

From sun-baked Odessa, Texas, Treaty Oak Revival brought its blistering, punk-edged country-rock to Stagecoach on Saturday afternoon. Before the band’s set, I talked with the five members, whose latest album is “West Texas Degenerate.”

What defines a West Texas degenerate?

Sam Canty: They’re hard-working people from those areas where there’s not a lot of stuff to do, and they like to get a little rowdy on the weekends or maybe even during the week.

That’s a nice answer.

Canty: The nasty answer is: It’s a bunch of booze-drinking, strip-club-going, big-truck-driving motherf—.

What’s an East Texas degenerate?

Canty: Everything a West Texas degenerate is but with trees.

Country music is having a band moment. Why?

Canty: We started before bands were a big deal, so I don’t know. We’re just a group of guys who wanted to be a band because we’re best friends and we all wanted to get out of our jobs and experience life.

What’s the last job you had before the band took off?

Canty: I was a field manager building gas plants in the desert.

Dakota Hernandez: I worked for a tree service as a climber.

Cody Holloway: I was a water well technician and electrician.

Lance Vanley: I was an IT consultant managing networks and servers.

Jeremiah Vanley: Director of accounting and finance. I’m the softy.

Sydney Sweeney came on stage at Diplo’s Honky Tonk on Saturday at Stagecoach to throw out lingerie from her Syrn line.

(Evan Schaben/For The Times)

If the first Stagecoach fever dream of Saturday was the unlikely cast of Billy Bob Thornton, Wynonna Judd, Gavin Rossdale and Gavin Adcock cooking and chopping it up with Guy Fieri at the Stagecoach Smokehouse, a close second was Diplo’s early evening set in the Honky Tonk.

Already billed as Diplo with podcaster/comedian/Ella Langley duet partner Theo Von and Barstool Sports media personality Caleb Pressley, it also attracted some special guests. Actor Sydney Sweeney showed up to toss panties from her Syrn lingerie brand into the crowd. (She has a pop-up Syrn saloon on the festival grounds).

Shaboozey joins the crowd as they vibe to beats during Diplo’s set featuring Theo Von and Caleb Pressley at Diplo’s Honky Tonk at Stagecoach on Saturday.

(Evan Schaben/For The Times)

The “Euphoria” star wasn’t the only surprise during the set — “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” hitmaker Shaboozey also made an appearance. Even though they played some of his songs, he didn’t perform. Like Sweeney, Shaboozey also has a pop-up saloon at the festival, his promoting upcoming record “The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales.”

And when you think things couldn’t get any weirder, Von went crowdsurfing. Stay weird, Stagecoach.

Theo Von crowd surfs during his DJ set with Diplo and Caleb Pressley at Stagecoach on Saturday.

(Evan Schaben/For The Times)

Singer and guitarist Gavin Rossdale and drummer Nik Hughes, of Bush, perform on the Mustang Stage at sunset as extreme weather begins to move in during the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival on Saturday.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Just before we were told to evacuate last night, I was about to write about Bush’s Stagecoach debut on the Mustang Stage.

Even as the weather turned colder and the winds turned gnarlier, Gavin Rossdale seemed to be having a great time as the band ripped through a 50-minute set packed with hits including opener “Machinehead,” “Everything Zen,” “Swallowed,” “Glycerine” and set-closing sing-along “Comedown.”

Pitbull hit the Mustang Stage an hour later than expected Saturday night after gusty winds forced Stagecoach to evacuate attendees for more than an hour, but Mr. Worldwide didn’t let a delay stop the fun.

“We came here to do one thing and one thing only,” he said from the stage early in the set.

The one thing? Party.

After an intro featuring his DJ and full band that included Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” and Beastie Boys’ “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!),” Mr. Worldwide appeared, flanked by a half dozen dancers in revealing costumes, to open the raucous set with “Don’t Stop the Party.”

After the song he thanked everyone at Stagecoach for staying and also name-checked some Goldenvoice employees, including Stagecoach booker Stacy Vee, as well as Lainey Wilson, who had just wrapped her headlining set on the Mane Stage.

He followed up the moment of gratitude with “Hey Baby (Drop It to the Floor)” and “Hotel Room Service.”

Later on in the set, Lil Jon joined Pitbull for “Jumpin” before being showered with more gratitude from Pitbull and the crowd. Then the pair performed “Damn I Love Miami.”

I’d like to start a petition for Stagecoach to book Pitbull every year — and bring him to Coachella, too!

After an hourlong delay due to high winds, Lainey Wilson kicked off her headlining set at Stagecoach on Saturday night with a one-two punch of “Can’t Sit Still” and “Wildflowers and Wild Horses” — each a solid example of the riff-heavy country-rock that’s made Wilson one of the biggest stars to come out Nashville in the last 10 years.

“Y’all ready to sing it loud tonight?” she asked the crowd, which was maybe a bit thinner than it might’ve been thanks to fans who left before the festival announced it was reopening. Those who stuck around seemed plenty willing to bellow along.

Stagecoach updated its schedule for Saturday night after a temporary evacuation due to high winds. Journey, which had been scheduled to play the Mustang stage, will no longer perform; Lainey Wilson, who was set to headline the show’s main stage, will play an hour later than originally scheduled at 10:30 p.m.

Riley Green, who was supposed to play from 7:50-8:50 p.m. on the Mane Stage, has also been taken off the lineup for Saturday.

Pitbull’s late night set at the Mustang Stage was supposed to go from 11-11:55 p.m. He is now on from midnight to 1 a.m.

Gavin Adcock is now joining the Whiskey Jam All Star Sing-Along in the Palomino Tent from 11-11:45 p.m. instead of his solo set.

As of 8:42 p.m., the festival advised via its mobile app that Stagecoach will resume momentarily. “We are working to open doorsand prep the site for your safety,” the alert said. “Stay tuned for updates.” By 9 p.m. the gates were reopened and fans began returning.

Due to high winds, festival promoter Goldenvoice has postponed Stagecoach until further notice and crowds are currently being evacuated. The city of Indio where the fest is located is under a strong wind advisory until 11 a.m. Sunday morning. More to come...

Has anyone checked on Teddy Swims’ house in whatever city he lives in besides Indio? The tattooed soul-rock singer played Stagecoach on Saturday night after doing both weekends of Coachella, and once again he brought out David Lee Roth to sing Van Halen’s “Jump” — an indelible ‘80s staple these guys are double-handedly willing into a Gen Z anthem.

That wind advisory for Stagecoach wasn’t blowing smoke.

The gusts have arrived at the Empire Polo Club and it’s time for my favorite annual game of watching the cowboys chase after their hats.

Hopefully it won’t be as bad as Coachella Weekend 1, when someone was reportedly injured at the Do Lab by a falling object and Anyma had to cancel the debut of the “Æden” production.

We’ve still got Journey and Bush on the Mustang Stage tonight, which isn’t as protected from the elements.

Stagecoach is known for strange bedfellows (see: Emo Nite with Ashlee Simpson yesterday) but Guy Fieri with Wynonna Judd, Billy Bob Thornton, Gavin Rossdale and Gavin Adcock is so odd it seems like an AI hallucination. I promise you it happened Saturday afternoon.

“Everybody loves food. That’s the common denominator,” Fieri told the crowd, which included a woman who impressively dressed up as Fieri, fake mustache/goatee and a flame-covered bowling shirt.

“Flavortownnnnn!” Judd said as she walked onto the demonstration stage at Guy’s Stagecoach Smokehouse.

“Just so you know, we could do our own cooking show,” Fieri said as he introduced her.

Each of the stars was paired with a chef, which included Eric Greenspan, Mark Murphy, Aaron May and Hunter Fieri.

Thornton made salmon and fried okra with spicy hummus with Hunter Fieri. The “Landman” star said the key for good fried okra is to use cornmeal. He also shared his favorite chili, which isn’t hot for the sake of being hot.

“Calabrian chili has a flavor,” Thornton said.

He also told the crowd of a new delicacy he discovered: white grapes and dipped it in spicy Dijon mustard.

“It blew my mind,” Thornton said.

Adcock, meanwhile made a giant prime rib sandwich and beer battered onion rings.

“I’m a big beef guy,” Adcock said.

Meanwhile, Bush frontman Rossdale was doing what Fieri said was a first for Stagecoach — he made an Asian dish of smoked chicken dredged and flash-fried and shared with two sauces: one a Japanese rice wine and the other a sweet sauce.

“This guy is a real foodie,” Fieri said about Rossdale, who has his own cooking show. “I’m gonna put a chef with him but he doesn’t need it.”

Speaking of strange things, here’s my pitch for an “Odd Couple” reboot: Rossdale and Adcock with Fieri as the wacky neighbor. Someone point me to the Paramount+ tent so I can pitch it.

NASHVILLE — Lainey Wilson headlines the Mane Stage at Stagecoach at 9:30 p.m. Saturday. Read Mikael Wood’s 2022 interview with Wilson from our archives.

Lainey Wilson’s first paying gig as a singer was the grand opening of a convenience store in her tiny hometown of Baskin, La. She was 9 years old, and the job paid 20 bucks.

A person grooves high above the crowd while watching Emo Nite DJs inside Diplo’s Honkytonk during the 2026 Stagecoach Country Music Festival.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

See more photos from Stagecoach 2026.

Bush plays the Mustang Stage at 6:45 p.m. We caught up with frontman Gavin Rossdale in 2025.

Three decades after he found alternative-rock stardom as the frontman of Bush, Gavin Rossdale has a new job: TV chef. In each episode of “Dinner With Gavin Rossdale,” which premiered Thursday on Vizio’s WatchFree+ platform, the 59-year-old singer and guitarist welcomes a different celebrity guest — first up is Serena Williams, followed by the likes of Selma Blair, Tom Jones and Jack McBrayer — into his Studio City abode for a home-cooked meal and an intimate conversation. Rossdale, who shares three sons with ex-wife Gwen Stefani, spoke on a recent morning about the show and his life in Los Angeles and about Bush, which will resume touring later this year behind the band’s 10th studio album, “I Beat Loneliness.”

Bailey Zimmerman performed Friday night at Stagecoach, where his set mixed post-grunge country hits like “Religiously” and “Where It Ends” with a cover of Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” and an appearance by BigXthaPlug on their duet “All the Way.” Before Zimmerman’s set, I met with the 26-year-old singer inside a denim-bedecked pop-up presented by American Eagle, for whom Zimmerman serves as an official spokesbro.

Did you only agree to become an American Eagle ambassador because you thought you might be able to meet Sydney Sweeney?

I would understand why you would think that. But honestly, no — it was a full circle moment in my life. Before my American Eagle deal, I had all the American Eagle underwear. They couldn’t send me new ones — I had ’em all.

Ready to sing along from your couch? The Amazon Music Stagecoach Saturday livestream has you covered. For a heartfelt ballad, you’ll be able to tune in as Teddy Swims and Lainey Wilson take the Stagecoach stage. Take a trip back in time to watch Bush perform, then end the night tuning into Mr. Worldwide taking over the desert as Pitbull closes out the Saturday performances.

The festival will be livestreamed on Amazon Music, Prime Video and Twitch. On Sirius XM’s the Highway (channel 56), you can listen to exclusive interviews and live performances. Their station Y’allternative will also be covering the festival on Saturday.

We’re back for a second day of Stagecoach and you’re going to want to hold on to your hat.

The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory starting at 2 p.m. and lasting until 11 a.m. Sunday. Winds of 25 to 35 mph and gusts up to 50 mph are expected. The South Coast Air Quality Management District also issued a windblown dust advisory for the Coachella Valley. That means you will absolutely want to have a face covering out at the Empire Polo Club today.

It seems appropriate that Lainey Wilson is headlining tonight. The star had a hit with the song “Out of Oklahoma” from the 2024 movie “Twisters.”

I’m just hoping Mr. Worldwide himself, Pitbull, doesn’t get blown away for his late night Mustang Stage set.

It’s also not quite as sunny as it was on Friday, with more cloud cover, and the high will only be in the low 80s.

After a brief reprieve following the end of Coachella, we find ourselves in the desert again for Stagecoach — hot, dusty and eager to be amused. The first day of the weekend offered plenty of top-tier country performances including Cody Johnson, Ella Langley, and Bailey Zimmerman along with a dose of nostalgia courtesy of ‘90s stars Counting Crows and Emo Nite featuring Ashlee Simpson. Let’s also not forget that Stagecoach is a place to catch celebrity cameos—we’re looking at you, Sydney Sweeney. Here’s our recap of all the fun we experienced on Day 1 of the festival.

Jessie Erickson, of Anchorage, Alaska, sings “more than my home town” by Morgan Wallen at the SYRN Saloon during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at Empire Polo Club, in Indio, CA on April 24, 2026.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Billy Bob Thornton and his band the Boxmasters play the Palomino Stage at 4:45 p.m. Saturday. Thornton talked to us in 2024 about “Landman,” his Paramount+ show that’s part of the streamer’s pop-up presence at Stagecoach.

Billy Bob Thornton recently did a two-for-one. The actor was able to promote his new Paramount+ series, “Landman,” while on tour with his band, the Boxmasters, in Texas in September. “I did a few things along the road,” he says. “Not many. There were a few phone interviews and then a couple of cities where they had a SAG screening that I would go do a Q&A in the afternoon before the shows.”

This year, Stagecoach has a new stage, the Mustang. Unlike the OG Mustang from the festival’s early years (essentially the old Gobi Tent from Coachella), the new Mustang Stage at Stagecoach is NOT Coachella’s Sahara Tent, but rather a new large outdoor stage built in front of the Sahara Tent and where Radiohead’s Bunker was during Coachella.

It’s the new site for the late night shows from Diplo, Pitbull and Ludacris after the Mane Stage wraps each night. It’s also where you can find ‘90s rock bands like Counting Crows, Bush and Third Eye Blind, as well as classic rock icons Journey.

BigXThaPlug, with actress Sydney Sweeney in the audience, was one of the big draws for the stage on Friday.

Lyle Lovett performed Friday evening in Stagecoach’s Palomino tent with the group of killers he calls his Large Band. After the show, I sat with the singer and actor in the front seats of what I’ll call his Large SUV. “It’s a rental,” he said.

We’re in here because you want to protect your voice?

You know, I don’t smoke marijuana.

Dan + Shay (Dan Smyers, left, and Shay Mooney) perform on the Palomino Stage during the 2026 Stagecoach Country Music Festival on Friday.

(Evan Schaben/For The Times)

Duo Dan+ Shay joined the festival lineup just two weeks ago as a surprise addition.

See our photo gallery from Stagecoach 2026.

Actress Sydney Sweeney takes photos with fans before watching rapper BigXthaPlug perform on the Mustang Stage during the 2026 Stagecoach Country Music Festival on Friday.

(Evan Schaben/For The Times)

Actress Sydney Sweeney snapped photos with fans during BigXThaPlug’s set at the Mustang Stage Friday at Stagecoach. Sweeney also has a pop-up bar promoting her lingerie line Syrn at the festival. (Keep scrolling to see more about Sweeney’s pop-up.)

Cody Johnson opened his headlining set Friday night by promising to “bring a little Texas to California if that’s all right with y’all.” Yet the most surprising moment of his 90-minute show actually brought a bit of Philadelphia to Stagecoach when Boyz II Men dropped in to join Johnson for a rendition of the veteran R&B crew’s “On Bended Knee.”

If we’re being honest, the vocal mix was ... not the evening’s finest. But the selection was appealingly unexpected from a down-the-middle country star like Johnson, who spent much of the rest of his set recounting his long music-industry come-up and urging folks to see past their differences in the name of unity.

He also lamented the three months he had to take off the road after busting his eardrum last year — “I was depressed about it,” he said — before acknowledging that the unanticipated break meant he got to be home for the birth of his youngest child.

Bailey Zimmerman brought his puppy-ish energy — and an encouraging self-help message — to Stagecoach’s main stage Friday night ahead of Cody Johnson’s headlining set. “I grew up with nothing, and I worked my ass off to be where I am,” he bellowed before ripping off his shirt to punctuate the point.

I am VERY into the ‘90s alt acts playing Stagecoach 2026 (I see you, Third Eye Blind) and Counting Crows got things off to a sublime start as the sun set Friday.

While the band played its breakout hit, “Mr. Jones,” early in the set, singer Adam Duritz let the crowd take the lead and almost did some spoken word in the second verse.

“How was your first day at country Coachella? They only call it Stagecoach because Count-chella doesn’t sound good,” the singer asked the crowd before the band launched into the “Shrek 2” hit “Accidentally in Love.”

The hits kept coming, including “Round Here” and “Rain King.”

But the perfect moment under cotton candy skies happened during the band’s penultimate song, the hit “A Long December” off 1996’s “Recovering the Satellites.” With the crowd singing along, the sun setting behind the mountains and good feelings all around, it was nothing if not a vibe.

“I’m gonna go ahead and burst your bubble,” Ella Langley said about halfway through her main-stage set Friday night. She’d just teed up her brand-new single, “I Can’t Love You Anymore,” a shimmering roots-soul duet with country’s biggest star, Morgan Wallen. “Morgan is not here,” she continued. “He’s on dad duty this weekend. Can’t blame a man for being a good dad.”

And you can’t blame Langley for managing expectations. But she didn’t need Wallen (or anybody else) to show why she’s the biggest thing in country music right now: This was an effortlessly cool performance by a deeply vibey singer and songwriter who’s absorbed more than Stevie Nicks’ predilection for lightweight shawls. (“Broken” was extremely Fleetwood Mac-coded.)

Langley did bring out a special guest: the podcaster Theo Von, who did Riley Green’s part in “You Look Like You Love Me” for some reason. (Big podcaster energy is what I’ll say.) She played “Choosin’ Texas” — her dreamy pop-country smash that’s currently at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 — not last but next to last, leaving “Weren’t for the Wind” as her closer. Baller move.

I said that it felt like I went to Warped Tour two weeks ago when I saw ska/punk band Less Than Jake perform at Coachella’s Heineken House and this weekend I found the Stagecoach version of Warped Tour on Day 1!

How is the giant country festival channeling the SoCal-born traveling punk festival, you ask? The popular Emo Nite DJ set was booked at Diplo’s Honky Tonk. (Emo Nite is no stranger to the Goldenvoice desert fests, by the way. They played the Sahara Tent at Coachella a few years back, too.)

Emo Nite’s Morgan Reed and T.J. Petracca opened up with Fall Out Boy’s “Sugar We’re Going Down” to set the sing-a-long tone before blistering through a set of remixes to songs by beloved emo and pop-punk artists such as Panic! At the Disco, Paramore, All-American Rejects and My Chemical Romance. They also played some emo-adjacent and not-so-emo-adjacent tracks, such as the Killers’ “Mr. Brightside,” System of a Down’s “Chop Suey,” Blink-182’s “All the Small Things” and Justin Bieber’s “Baby.” (Bieberchella lives even at Stagecoach!)

Ashlee Simpson was one of the guests for Emo Nite at Stagecoach on Friday.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Part of the appeal of the set was special guest Ashlee Simpson. She arrived at the end of the DJ set to perform and when she did “La La” the crowd went nuts.

Simpson wasn’t the only guest. 3OH!3 also showed up, dressed up like Woody from “Toy Story” to perform a couple of songs, including “My First Kiss.”

The members of 3OH!3, dressed as Woody from “Toy Story,” surprised Stagecoach fans for a guest appearance during the Emo Nite DJ set at the 2026 Stagecoach Country Music Festival.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

This Emo Nite set definitely skewed younger, which matched the crowd. (Am I sad that we had no Jimmy Eat World or Taking Back Sunday? Yes, but I know I’m an elder emo.)

Despite the heat, the people keep pouring into Stagecoach even for the early acts.

One of my favorite things about this fest is that there are always interesting cover choices and the first one I heard today that caught my attention was Avery Anna on the Mane Stage doing a cover of Ozzy Osbourne’s “No More Tears.”

Ozzy! At Stagecoach!

It was weird to hear it while I watched Ella Langley and Bailey Zimmerman capture branded content for American Eagle Jeans, but it’s Stagecoach, baby.

I am on my way to a rather unlikely Stagecoach pairing: Emo Nite with Ashlee Simpson

I learned my lesson the last time I was here when Diplo’s Honky Tonk was filled up so I made sure I am here early to make sure I get a spot and test if one can line dance to emo.

En route to the press tent this sunny Friday, I saw a spot with saloon doors boasting karaoke. It didn’t click that the air-conditioned pop-up was a bar connected to Sydney Sweeney’s Syrn brand until I was inside and saw the lingerie hanging from the bar.

It was early in the day, so not much karaoke was happening, but you could scan a QR code and sign up via a Karafun link. I contemplated doing “A Long December” from the Counting Crows since they’re playing the Mustang Stage this evening, but thought it would No.1 bring down the mood and No.2, not really fit in with the Coyote Ugly vibes.

However, I saw dartboards on the wall and a sign to ask the “brand ambassador” about darts and I immediately thought — the hard drinkin’ Stagecoach crowd should probably not have sharp objects. They don’t. I found a “brand ambassador” and he showed off the darts, which were magnetic. It still might not be the best idea to let people throw projectiles as the night goes on, though.

Bailey Zimmerman plays Stagecoach’s Mane Stage at 7:50 p.m. Friday, April 24. We caught up with him last summer.

Bailey Zimmerman bounds into a conference room at his manager’s office in Beverly Hills with the puppyish enthusiasm of someone even younger than he is. At 25, Zimmerman has already scored four No. 1 country-radio hits — including “Rock and a Hard Place” and the namesake track from his double-platinum 2023 debut, “Religiously. The Album” — and toured stadiums as an opening act for his pal Morgan Wallen. Now, the singer and songwriter has readied a follow-up LP, “Different Night Same Rodeo,” which he says expands his sound in new and unexpected directions.

Hello from sunny Indio where there are very few clouds in the sky and my phone says it is 86 degrees. (It’s going to get a little warmer today before cooling off for the weekend.)

Fans cheered as the gates opened a few minutes after 1 p.m., as dozens of fans lugged around camping chairs on their backs as they passed through security.

That is one of the big differences between Coachella and Stagecoach. At Stagecoach, you can bring your own low-backed chair into general admission areas.

After I parked I overheard a group of 20-something guys talking about the other festival that just wrapped in the desert.

“Stagecoach I’ll do every year ‘til I die but I want to go to Coachella once when the lineup is really good to see what the difference is,” one said.

As the 200 or so people ahead of me wait to go through security, we at least get a soundtrack of 2Pac and Dr. Dre’s “California Love” playing from inside the fest. The vibes, they are good.

Counting Crows plays Stagecoach’s Mustang Stage at 6:45 p.m. Friday, April 24. Here’s an interview from our archives when we caught up with singer Adam Duritz in 2023.

In September 1993, Adam Duritz and his Bay Area folk-rock band, Counting Crows, released their debut album, “August and Everything After,” which went on to sell 7 million copies, spawned an inescapable radio smash in “Mr. Jones” and turned the dreadlocked Duritz into one of Hollywood’s most enthusiastic daters of actors (including, as the story goes, two “Friends” cast members in Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox).

Ashlee Simpson will appear with Emo Nite at Diplo’s Honkytonk at Stagecoach at 5 p.m. Friday, April 24. We caught up with her last summer.

Ashlee Simpson has a cold, and thank goodness for that.

Planning a proper trip to Coachella or Stagecoach is a master class in logistics. Before setting foot on the Empire Polo Club where these annual fests are held, fans have already made decisions on where to stay, what to pack, where to eat, what to see and which bandanna will be covering your nose and mouth from the dust on the walk back to the car. But true veterans of this fest know that one of the best parts of this desert journey is planning some side quests. Carving out time to indulge in natural wonders, great food, outsider art, local record shopping and more is all part of making the most of any festival weekend in Indio. With that in mind, we’ve compiled a very doable list of enjoyable extracurricular excursions to fill some free time with 14 essential experiences.

SEE THE FULL LIST.

Choosin’ to stay home instead of trekking out to Indio for this weekend’s Stagecoach festival? Don’t worry, you’ll be able to listen to all the country music your heart desires. You can get your country heartbreak on with Ella Langley, Bailey Zimmerman and Cody Johnson, and then rock out with Counting Crows. If you prefer EDM, you can catch Diplo and Dillstradamus (Dillon Francis and Flosstradamus) as Friday’s closing acts.

The festival will be livestreamed on Amazon Music, Amazon Prime Video and Twitch beginning at 3 p.m. On Sirius XM’s The Highway (channel 56), you can listen to exclusive interviews and live performances along with a special edition of the Music Row Happy Hour. The station Y’Allternative will also be covering the festival on Friday evening.

Trade the flower crowns and sneakers for a cowboy hat and some boots, because Coachella has moved out of the Empire Polo Club in Indio and the Stagecoach Festival is moving in, April 24 to 26.

Post Malone, who headlined Coachella in 2025 and played a set of country covers at Stagecoach in 2024, is back to headline the country music fest along with Lainey Wilson and Cody Johnson.

Follow our live blog as Times Pop Music Critic Mikael Wood and Senior Audience Editor Vanessa Franko cover this weekend’s Stagecoach Country Music Festival, from the biggest sets and surprise guests to a visit to Guy Fieri’s Flavortown outpost in the desert.

Well, Vanessa, we’re back. After a brief reprieve following the end of Coachella, you and I find ourselves in the desert again — hot, dusty and eager to be amused. I’m looking forward to Stagecoach performances by Ella Langley, who currently has the No. 1 album and single in the country, and the raft of ‘90s rock bands on the bill, Bush and Third Eye Blind among them. And I’m curious what Post Malone has in store for his Sunday-night headlining set: Will he do straight country or do a mix of his Nashville stuff and his old rap hits? — M.W.

Mikael, with all of the ‘90s nostalgia going on, have we considered that Posty could bust out a set of Nirvana’s “Nevermind” like he did during the pandemic? That’s not going to happen, but I’m all about time traveling to the KROQ Weenie Roast circa 1997. I’m planning to spend a lot of time at the new Mustang Stage to see those ‘90s bands you mentioned, plus Counting Crows, Hootie & the Blowfish, The Wallflowers and Journey. In a time when we’re so divided, can anything unite us more than a sing-along to “Don’t Stop Believin’”? — V.F.

Big Weenie Roast energy here, my friend, I agree. Then again, Cody Johnson as a headliner Friday night shows that Stagecoach is still looking to hold it down for traditional country fans. Given the scale of surprises at Coachella — the one and only Madonna springs to mind — I wonder who’ll pop out unannounced this weekend. Seems like a safe bet that Lainey Wilson has some big names up her fringed sleeve for Saturday night. — M.W.

Speaking of guests, Teddy Swims is back after two weekends of bringing out guests at Coachella and all I keep thinking is will David Lee Roth return for a third weekend to sing “Jump” and will he have a third pair of chevron-patterned stage pants?

But I love how truly random Stagecoach gets once you’re away from the Mane Stage. Pitbull doing a Saturday late night set? Don’t stop the party. Emo Nite featuring Ashlee Simpson in Diplo’s Honky Tonk? Giddy up and let’s figure out how to line dance to My Chemical Romance. Guy Fieri cooking with Gavin Rossdale, Gavin Adcock, Billy Bob Thornton and Wynonna Judd? Count me in for that fever dream. — V.F.