The Japan Times - Lady Gaga brings mayhem to the desert on Coachella day one

Fresh off the release of her latest album "Mayhem," the marquee performer of Friday's lineup entertained her legions of Little Monsters, as her fans are known, with a 90-minute set that included simulations of death and rebirth.

She leaned heavily into her new work of dancepop tracks, but the crowd roared when she performed the major hits that made her name, including "Paparazzi" and "Bad Romance."

Her rendition of "Poker Face" saw Gaga playing against her dancers in a giant chess game -- the type of performance art that made her one of the contemporary era's seminal pop stars.

Missy Elliott meanwhile delivered a headliner-worthy show of her own, a blistering, catalog-spanning set featuring trippy visuals, lasers and her smashes including "Lose Control," "Get Ur Freak On" and "Work It."

Benson Boone performed his hit of the moment "Beautiful Things" -- and did his signature showtime backflip, of course -- as well as a rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody" backed by none other than Queen guitarist Brian May.

British punk ravers The Prodigy packed a tent for their late-night set, and Blackpink's Lisa -- fresh off a role in HBO's hit show "The White Lotus" -- electrified the stage solo, having twice performed at Coachella with her bandmates.

South African star Tyla meanwhile brought out a massive crowd as she gyrated alongside her troupe of dancers and a giant tiger statue on Friday, a year after an injury forced her to pull out of the annual festival.

Later in the weekend, Charli XCX is expected to turn the grounds her signature "brat" green, after a blockbuster year that saw her latest album propel her to new echelons of fame.

Travis Scott will play a special guest slot following Green Day's top-billed Saturday set, years after the hip-hop performer was slated to headline the 2020 festival, which was ultimately scrapped due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

And Post Malone will close out the weekend as Sunday's headliner.

- Heating up -

The desert weekend marks the unofficial start of music festival season -- and it was a scorcher, with temperatures cracking the 100-degree Fahrenheit mark (37.8 degrees Celsius).

That made sunscreen dispensers and water refill stations some of the hottest destinations on the poorly shaded grounds as the afternoon sun blazed.

Among the tens of thousands of music fans who traversed the sprawling grounds, many wielded paper fans and parasols, even as some sported leather get-ups at the festival that also doubles as a fashion runway.

The heat was especially tough on the exuberant costumed dancers of the kids' television musical show "Yo Gabba Gabba!" who made starring appearances on the grounds Friday afternoon, delighting revelers young and old who scrambled to take selfies with the characters.

The show, first released in 2007, has a cult following and is slated to perform a full set on Saturday with a number of celebrity guest stars.

"So many 'kids' attending the festival, grew up watching the show," said show co-creator Christian Jacobs in a backstage interview with AFP. "That's exciting."

Saturday is also expected to include a buzzy set helmed by conductor Gustavo Dudamel, who will lead the Los Angeles Philharmonic in the first performance by a major professional orchestra at Coachella.

- Rock's got the beat -

The ever-eclectic Coachella has leaned decidedly pop over the past decade, but the 2025 edition is getting back to the festival's rock roots.

Legendary all-women rock band The Go-Gos donned glittering, metallic outfits as they reunited at Coachella, performing their hits including "Vacation" and "We Got the Beat."

They also invited Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong onstage for a rendition of "Head Over Heels."

Along with The Go-Gos and Green Day, rock acts including the original Misfits, Jimmy Eat World and cult punk legends Circle Jerks are slated to play.

"In this world gone sideways we know one thing for certain -- rock 'n' roll is forever, and its spirit is needed now more than ever," said Armstrong this year in Billboard.

Coachella 2025 takes place on April 11-13 and 18-20.

K.Yamaguchi--JT