Coachella isn’t just where influencers go to get pissed on! It’s also where artists go to make more money than any of us will in our entire lives.
I know, this isn’t surprising when you consider the artists who have graced the Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival over the years — like Beyoncé, Harry Styles, Lizzo (I may/may not have been passed out at the 2019 campsite for that one), Ariana Grande and more.
But like… how much money are we talking? If we can’t have the money, at least let us talk about it and salivate over it.
Actual figures have never been shared by the festival itself, of course, but there have been reports from various outlets, publications and even artists over the years. The findings make me both sick and jealous, but this is the life I must lead when my singing voice sounds like a broken car engine.
Bad Bunny: $5 million
According to Trapital Podcast, 2023 headliner Bad Bunny is getting a pretty $5 million after raking in over 18.5 billion streams last year (in fact, it landed him the title of Spotify’s top artist for three years running).
The Weeknd: $8.5 million
Sheesh. The Weeknd received $8.5 million for replacing Kanye West when he dropped out of Coachella 2022. According to Page Six, The Weeknd demanded the same amount that Kanye would’ve gotten.
Ariana Grande: $8 million
Ariana received $8 million for the two weekends she performed at Coachella in 2019. I was in attendance/suitably off my head for Ariana’s performance on the second weekend which leaves me with one question: did Justin Bieber get a cut of this pay cheque to join her on stage for a bit?
Beyoncé: $8-$12 million
Billboard reported that Beyoncé was paid somewhere around $8-12million in 2018. Look, I don’t question it — she is the queen and it makes sense, to me. But no amount of money can take away the fact that you played Foxy Cleopatra in Goldmember. And that helps me sleep at night.
Lady Gaga, Kendrick Lamar, Radiohead: $3-4 million
The New Yorker claimed that Lady Gaga, Kendrick Lamar and Radiohead were paid between $3-$4million for being headlining acts in 2017. Interesting!
Cardi B: $70,000
How would you be? Cardi B was paid $70,000 per weekend for Coachella 2018, sharing the information during an interview with Sirius XM.
To add salt to the wound of your peers making literal millions more than you for the same event, Cardi said that she didn’t even break even after forking out $300,000 for her stage set.
“I have to invest so much money on my stage set, my own money that I have to go to Wells Fargo and write a check,” she said. “It’s crazy. Almost $300,000.”
Lifestyles of the rich and the famous, hey. And here I am sweating about the $19.95 I just spent on a Domino’s Pizza deal of the day.
Chantelle Schmidt is a freelance writer. You can follow her on Instagram or TikTok.
