Music fans everywhere were disappointed to learn that this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was postponed due to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. The Southern California festival draws hundreds of thousands of people to the Empire Polo Club fields in Indio annually for two weekends filled with three days of music each.
This year’s festival was slated to take place over two weekends in April but organizers Goldenvoice pushed it to October as the coronavirus outbreak grew and concerns over the spread of the virus mounted. Many bands and artists began canceling shows worldwide and postponing tours last month followed by Goldenvoice’s announcement on March 10 re-scheduling Coachella and their outdoor country music festival Stagecoach – which is held at the same location - for October.
While festival-goers may have to wait another six months before they can dance in the desert to the likes of Frank Ocean and Travis Scott, Coachella does have something to offer music lovers who will instead be at home this month.
“Coachella: 20 Years in the Desert,” a new YouTube Originals documentary about the history of the annual festival will begin live streaming on April 10 – the day the festival was set to kick off.
YouTube has live-streamed the opening weekend of Coachella since 2011. So those that can't attend but still want to catch the performances are well versed with celebrating what some have dubbed "Couchella."
The documentary will feature performances and behind-the-scenes stories about the evolution of the festival.
"The film gives a rare look at Coachella’s colorful beginning, presents exclusive, never-before-seen footage, interviews, and features key performances from some of the biggest names in music," according to the documentary's website which also features a timeline of highlights from Coachella's first edition in 1999 through last year.
The three-and-a-half-minute trailer gives glimpses of Beyonce’s legendary 2018 performance, the appearance of the Tupac Shakur hologram in 2012, and Billie Eilish’s 2019 Coachella debut. Eilish herself is the first voice heard in the trailer saying, “Everybody knows what Coachella is. Even if you don’t care about music, you know.” Concert footage of everyone from Madonna to Paul McCartney is sprinkled with news snippets and interviews with various artists sharing their thoughts on the festival and its importance on the music industry.
The documentary will be available to stream on YouTube starting at noon on YouTube on Friday, April 10.
Coachella’s new dates are slated to be Oct. 9 – 11 and Oct. 16 – 18, 2020. Stagecoach is scheduled for October 23, 24 and 25, 2020.
RELATED: Lineup released for Coachella 2020
