Feb. 9, 2023
By Nikki Antonesco
Managing Editor
On Jan. 10, Coachella’s official Instagram account released the lineup for its 2023 music and arts festival. I rushed to the site and was ecstatic to learn that Frank Ocean will be headlining on April 16 and 23. Ocean performed at Coachella in 2012. However, he was not a headliner.
The 35-year-old rapper from Long Beach, California started off his career in 2010 as a ghostwriter for well-known musicians and was in the hip-hop collective Odd Future. He debuted his first mixtape named “nostalgia, ULTRA” in 2011. The mixtape brought him immediate success. The next year, he released my favorite album, “channel, ORANGE,” and in 2016, he released “Blonde.”
Ocean had reportedly stopped making music after the release of “Blonde.” I have been dying for more music and more interviews from Ocean. His mysterious disappearance left fans like me with so many questions.
Fast forward to 2023. Frank Ocean is officially back and ready to perform.
I believed he would return to music soon, but tragically, his brother, Ryan Breaux, died in a sudden car accident in 2020. Hearing this news was very upsetting, and I immediately ran to Twitter to send my condolences.
Fast forward to 2023. Frank Ocean is officially back and ready to perform.
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is a music festival that started in 1999 as a two-day festival. Now, it is a 6-day festival featuring 162 performers that will run from April 14-16 and April 21-23.
Ocean is known for his solemn songs. This has led fans like me to joke that instead of his performances being upbeat and lively, they will be crying fests for the audience.
Not surprisingly, throughout the years, ticketing for Coachella has gone up exponentially. In 1999, tickets started at $50 per day. Now, ticket prices for a weekend start at $549.
I believe Coachella will collect a lot of money from having Ocean as one of its headliners because he has dedicated and passionate fans, including me.
I am heartbroken that I will be unable to attend Coachella in person, but I am excited that I’ll be able to watch Ocean perform on the live stream. I look forward to seeing what songs he decides to perform.
