Coachella is a festival that turns heads all over social media every year. The event is an annual musical showcase of the most culturally prominent artists, with a target audience of the financially well-off, promoting a luxury experience. This social gathering is rather new, starting in 1999 and becoming more mainstream during the early 2010s. Yet even with such early success, many attendees are starting to note the gradual downfall of the production. Over the years, there has been an increase in criticism, but this year, there seems to be more problems and frustration.Ā
There are many ways for attendees to reside at the venue, and a popular option is camping. Camping at Coachella can be a more intense act than stereotypical camping due to the environment, provisions, and proximity to peers. This year, campers were immediately found in a disastrous situation. The evident lack of organization led to lines being outrageously long to get into the grounds, and concertgoers were forced to wait around 12 hours in lines before they could enter the festival grounds. Many of those stuck in the line reported that there was no organization, marking the absence of traffic control, signage, and basic necessities such as bathrooms and water. Even after entering their designated areas, people found them lacking coordination as there was little staff and they didnāt seem to know much.Ā
Music festivals are common in America; they provide a way for the general public to have a well-rounded concert experience, while they hold great importance for musical artists as a measure of revenue and influence. With the success of festivals, there have also been many failures throughout the history of this business, significant examples include Fyre Festival and Woodstock ā99. These incidents occur due to a lot of misconduct, but a main component of these issues is found in a lack of planning.
While this is obviously not the most pressing issue, attendees are paying for exclusive high-class experiences and should receive just that. Coachella is also an important event for music lovers in the west coast, as to be a part of the Coachella lineup publicizing and performing in the area is limited. As camping is a common method of Coachella accommodation, a fix for campers’ happenings should be prioritized. As this festival continues to advertise itself as a luxury event, it needs to match these expectations to their best ability by providing all concertgoers with accommodations to have a fun and safe time.Ā
Event planning is an undervalued job field, and expertise in this field isnāt being utilized to its full extent. As cost is up and experience is down, Coachella needs to repair this before its reputation continues taking hits. Known as an organization that can get away with zero effort due to their abundance of a ravenous consumer base, it is a profitable market in the short term, but not a permanent or respectable position. They should hire professionals with expertise in dealing with large crowds and excessive attendance. High-volume events must prioritize their budgets to run their events smoothly. More guidelines and access to necessities in the timing processes are needed to keep situations organized. Reputation is everything in these businesses as they are what drives viewership and revenue, so to have such severe faults that create chaos and negative discernment is bad for Coachella in the long run.
It is important to note that festivals as a concept are not the problem here. Similar events occur all over the country regularly, and these events go off without a hitch. The core issue is that such festivals, especially those that expect high occupancy, need to be organized by experts. Especially when Coachella prides itself on being the best of its peers, the promised exclusivity should reflect all aspects of the weekends. Due to its notability, the foundation of Coachella 2026 should be in the works already. With the disasters of the occasion this year and the growing negative sentiment towards it, a change is needed. As prep for next yearās Coachella is underway, a modification of theĀ organization for the festival should be a priority to improve everyone’s experience.