For the past eight years, Stagecoach has been bringing country music to the Coachella valley. I wasn't sure if I was going to be attending the festival this year considering how costly it was, but I knew that if I didn't purchase a ticket, I would completely regret it. This festival is also something that every single person in the world needs to experience before they die. Three days spent out in the desert listening to pure country music while surrounded by fascinating people and eclectic vibes. Life truly doesn't get any better than that, right? Or maybe it does?
Well, a few months ago, I managed to land two little magical things called a press and photo pass (or fast passes if you want to be technical). Sadly, the media pass only granted me access into the media tent, but Andy Farra, our remarkable photographer, got to hang out in the photo pit for the first three songs of every set, capturing some breathtaking shots.
So, allow me to paint a picture for you of my entire journey this weekend and tell you how it all went down.
At the start of the weekend, my friends and I packed up my car and headed out to the desert while jammin' out to the ultimate country playlist. I was a little nervous driving up there because I had my first real, big-time interview scheduled for later in the day, with my first artist of the weekend, Drake White. Once we got up there, I quickly rushed over to the grounds with my neon orange general admission bracelet, and my metallic silver media band in hand (and here's where things started to get a little crazy). Once I actually got onto the grounds, I couldn't find the press tent where I was supposed to be doing my interview (and this is also right about when I went into panic mode). After about 30 minutes of frantically searching for the press tent that was located in the most inconspicuous and inconvenient spot on the grounds, I finally made it.
Once I arrived, I greeted White and his on-site manager and we all sat down to do the interview. I knew I didn't have much time with him (or time to be nervous for that matter), so I took out my notebook and my recorder and I went into journalist mode. At this moment, I felt like I could take on the world. This was White's first time performing at Stagecoach, and he is just one of those artists who is incredibly humbled and grateful for his career, his music and his fans, which is something quite refreshing to hear. Him and his band, The Big Fire, recently made their television debut on "The Today Show" and they took the Mane Stage by storm, performing some of their songs from their debut album. Drake White and The Big Fire are definitely a musical group to keep on your radar, as they are making their way to the top in the country music realm.
After the interview was over, I stayed in the press tent for a little while and I got to interact with all of the other publications who had media bands as well. I even chatted briefly with some of the artists' publicists, which was pretty awesome. By the time the sun went down, everyone had crowded around the Mane Stage (see what they did there?), and the night ahead was set out to be a good one with headliners like Eric Paslay, Chris Young, Sam Hunt and Eric Church. When it came time for Sam Hunt to take the stage, that's when things got absolutely crazy. After he played a few of his most popular songs like "Single for the Summer," "Ex to See" and "Take your Time," he did something that's never been done at Stagecoach before — he brought out Snoop Dogg, G-Eazy and Bebe Rexha as part of Bud Light's Music "Stage Moments" lineup for 2016. Check out some of the performance shots below.
Sam Hunt performs at Stagecoach 2016 during a Bud Light Music Stage Moment at The Empire Polo Club on April 29, 2016 in Indio, California. Image Image Credit: Joe Scarnici, Getty Images for Bud Light Music
G-Eazy and Bebe Rexha performed their smash hit, "Me Myself and I."
G-Eazy performs onstage at Stagecoach 2016 during a Bud Light Music Stage Moment at The Empire Polo Club on April 29, 2016 in Indio, California. Image Credit: Joe Scarnici, Getty Images for Bud Light Music
Bebe Rexha performs onstage at Stagecoach 2016 during a Bud Light Music Stage Moment at The Empire Polo Club on April 29, 2016 in Indio, California. Image Credit: Joe Scarnici, Getty Images for Bud Light Music
Snoop, of course, performed his infamous song "Drop it Like It's Hot."
Snoop Dogg performs onstage at Stagecoach 2016 during a Bud Light Music Stage Moment at The Empire Polo Club on April 29, 2016 in Indio, California. Image Credit: Joe Scarnici, Getty Images for Bud Light Music
And then they all came back out on stage to join Hunt in singing his chart-topping hit, "House Party," and the crowd went wild. This was definitely one of the highlights of the entire weekend.
Sam Hunt, Snoop Dogg, Bebe Rexha and G-Eazy performs onstage at Stagecoach 2016 during a Bud Light Music Stage Moment at The Empire Polo Club on April 29, 2016 in Indio, California. Image Credit: Joe Scarnici, Getty Images for Bud Light Music
Snoop Dogg, Bebe Rexha and G-Eazy performs onstage at Stagecoach 2016 during a Bud Light Music Stage Moment at The Empire Polo Club on April 29, 2016 in Indio, California. Image Credit: Joe Scarnici, Getty Images for Bud Light Music
Sam Hunt, Snoop Dogg, Bebe Rexha and G-Eazy pose for a photo backstage at Stagecoach 2016 after their Bud Light Music Stage Moment at The Empire Polo Club on April 29, 2016 in Indio, California. Image Credit: Joe Scarnici, Getty Images for Bud Light Music
The second day of the festival was even better than Friday. (I know, I didn't think that was even possible, but it was.)
I arrived at the grounds a little earlier on this day so I could prepare for the interviews I had lined up. My first interview was scheduled with one of my favorite artists, Caitlyn Smith. She is one of the sweetest and most incredible musicians I have ever met. You might know her as one of the musical geniuses behind "Like I'm Gonna Lose You," which was recorded by Meghan Trainor and John Legend. You can thank this artist for basically writing your favorite love song of all time. You're welcome.
The second interview I had scheduled for the day was with SUSTO, a Charleston, South Carolina-native country-rock band. This was their first major festival they had every played at, so it was a very profound experience for the entire band. It was also a very special experience for myself because I got to interview them just hours after stepping off the stage of one of the biggest music festivals in the country. It was a very surreal moment for SUSTO and me to say the very least. After my last interview for the day, I headed back out to the Mane stage to prepare for the night's headliners: Chris Stapleton, Joe Nichols, The Band Perry and Carrie Underwood. From the start of Chris Stapleton's set to the end of The Band Perry's (who, by the way, absolutely slayed the stage) the crowd sang, danced and cheered along with every single song. Carrie Underwood then took the stage, opening her set with “Renegade Runaway,” clad in a black, embellished moto vest and strappy stilettos. She also played other songs from her "Storyteller" album such as "Church Bells" and "Heartbeat," and also belted out some of her other hit songs "Undo It" and "I Did Something Bad." Check out some of the shots from the performance:
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Her performance was undoubtedly one of the most memorable ones of the entire weekend.
The last and final day of the festival was a sad one, as no one wanted the weekend to end. I headed to the grounds early to prepare for my two final interviews of the weekend: Old Dominion and A Thousand Horses. As Old Dominion walked into the press tent, my heart immediately starting racing as I was in the same room as one of my favorite country bands of all time. I walked up and greeted them and we all sat down on one of the couches to do the interview. This was also the bands' first time at the festival and they were set to take the stage right after I spoke with them. We discussed their new album "Meat and Candy," and also chatted about their two hit singles, "Snapback" and "Break Up With Him." Check out some shots below from the interview and of their performance.
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Image Credit: Andy Farra
Image Credit: Andy FarraAs the sun went down on the Indo desert, the last headliners of the weekend, Dustin Lynch (who I had the pleasure of interviewing last year), Little Big Town and, the performance that everyone was waiting for, Luke Bryan, took the stage to close out the weekend.
This festival was by far one of the greatest learning experiences for me as a journalist. I couldn't have imagined spending my weekend any other way than getting to know some of the artists, meeting some of the festival go-ers and listening to country music for three days straight. I can't wait to return to the festival next year and share my experience with you all once again. Until we meet again, Stagecoach.