Frank Ocean’s headlining set at Coachella didn’t go exactly how fans would’ve hoped. The first weekend of Coachella wrapped up on Sunday night with a headlining set from the enigmatic singer. Unfortunately, some felt like it wasn’t worth the three-year anticipation. For starters, Frank Ocean’s set wasn’t live streamed on YouTube to the ire of his fans watching at home. Even so, Coachella ticketholders also weren’t entirely happy with the experience. Don’t get it confused, people were happy he showed up at all but logistics and scheduling problems led to disappointment.
The “Swim Good” artist appeared on stage nearly an hour late for his first performance since 2017. Coachella scheduled Frank Ocean’s headlining spot for 10:05 p.m.. However, he appeared on stage at around 10:55 p.m. – nearly an hour before the festival’s usual 12 a.m. curfew. The singer abruptly cut his set short after performing a cover of The Isley Brothers’ “At Your Best (You Are Love).” “Guys, I’m being told it’s curfew, so that’s the end of the show. Thank you so much,” he told the audience before leaving the stage.
Frank Ocean Cuts Coachella Early
Despite the short set, Frank Ocean did provide fans with a bit more insight into his creative process as of late. On top of teasing a snippet of new music, his stage set-up was designed to appear as an intimate recording session. Then, midway through his set, he hosted a rave intermission, courtesy of DJ Crystalmess. However, he also suggested that he does have new music on the way as he explained why he agreed to perform. “I want to talk about why I’m here because it’s not because of a new album… Not that there’s not a new album,” he said before paying homage to his late brother, Ryan.
There’s no doubt that Frank Ocean had one of the most anticipated sets of the festival this year. It marked his return to Coachella in roughly a decade, though it wasn’t necessarily supposed to be this long. He was tapped as the headliner for the 2020 festival but due to the pandemic, Coachella was cancelled. The following year, Goldenvoice CEO and Coachella’s co-founder Paul Tollet confirmed that they would have Frank Ocean perform to make it up to the fans. Check out some footage & reactions from Frank Ocean’s set below.
Coachella Reactions