As the first Korean act to headline Coachella, BLACKPINK made sure to show up, show out, and shut down one of the world’s biggest festivals.
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In 2019, BLACKPINK had what could be described as a core-memory moment when they played at the Sahara Tent of Coachella. At the time, the group was just three years into their career and made history as the first K-pop girl group to perform at the festival. They joined a select group of Korean acts, such as Epik High, as some of the only artists to hit the festival. But 2019 was just an appetizer of what BLACKPINK could deliver as 2023 saw them give one of the best performances of their career. BLACKPINK told Coachella that they wanted to make history, and that’s exactly what they did.
Heading into Coachella 2023, BLACKPINK was already making history as the first Korean group to headline the world-famous festival. And they made sure to deliver on that hype. With more than 100,000 people watching in person and millions more tuned in via the YouTube livestream, BP did what needed to be done with an 18-song set. They sang and danced their way through the milestone on the way to becoming the most-viewed performance in Coachella history. And while the whole performance was great, it was those little details that the group added that made it even better. Here are some of those added flourishes that brought their performance to an 11.
THE INTRO FOR PINK VENOM
@xhlqnm this is so iconic ‼️ #blackpink #blinks #fyp #parati #foryourpage #xyzbca #jisoo #jennie #rosé #lisa #kpop #viral #viralvideo #blackpinklatam #blackpinkmexico #coachella #blackpinkbestgg #pinkvenom #kpopfyp ♬ Pink Venom – BLACKPINK
The intro is what sets the tone for the rest of the performance. So, the girls decided to go for epic right out of the gate with a new arrangement and set-up for Pink Venom. They came on the main stage with their robes before taking them off and getting into their hit single. It was hype in music form.
THE UNCENSORED VERSION OF MONEY
@ooo_lin_ooo COACHELLA version was🤑🔥🔥🔥😍@bp_tiktok #blackpink#blackpinkofficial#coachella#coachella2023 #lisa#lalisa#money ♬ MONEY – 리사 (LISA)
With the way they acted on stage, you could tell that BLACKPINK had fun in their Coachella set. Oh, and there’s also the fact that they didn’t inhibit themselves when it came to letting loose a few, or several, curse words. What had us shook the most though was when Lisa debuted the uncensored version of Money, which made the grandiose track hit even harder. Yes, Lisa, we’re gonna drop our MF money.
THE COLORS FOR THEIR SOLO STAGES
@ovi_duct FILO BLINKS PHILIPPINES, WHAT DO YOU THINK? #BLACKPINK #bornpinkmanila #bornpinkphilippines #pinkchella #coachella #pinkwave ♬ original sound – ezzieee
Some may think it’s a coincidence, but we’ll consider this a win for Filo BLINKS. During their solo stages, their names lit up in different colors with Jennie’s turning blue, Jisoo’s going red, Rose’s in white, and Lisa’s in yellow. However, these colors aren’t normally used during their solo stages. Instead, these were the colors Filo BLINKS used during the group’s Bulacan stop back in March as reference to the colors of the Philippine flag. Does this mean that BLACKPINK learned from their Filipino fans and adopted the colors? Either way, Filipino fans did that.
THE BLACK AND PINK OUTFITS
So the stylist mostly used color black for week 1 and now they're using mostly pinks for week 2?! Now that's brilliant! They represent blackpink well. Good job!
— Pinkchella 🎡🏜️ (@bornBlink4BP) April 23, 2023
PINKCHELLA IN YOUR AREA #PINKCHELLA #BLACKPINKxCoachella pic.twitter.com/UFiPhOR5vY
The stylists knew what they were doing when they decided to give the group black outfits for weekend one and pink outfits for weekend two. It’s giving BLACKPINK, literally.
NEW CHOREOGRAPHY
@jendukiecutiee suka bgt opening typa girl di coachella 😭😭🫶🏻🫶🏻 #coachella #coachella2023 #blackpinkcoachella2023 #blackpinkcoachellaheadliner #typagirl #fyp #fypシ ♬ Typa Girl – BLACKPINK
If haters thought that the Pinks would just do their Born Pink tour routine for Coachella, they were sadly mistaken. Despite their busy schedule, the group and their team found the time to add new flourishes to the set. They prepared new costumes, had fresh arrangements from their top-tier band, and flexed new moves and choreography. From the chair choreo in Pretty Savage to the opening of Typa Girl, BP gave us new routines to fawn over.
THE GIRLS SPEAKING KOREAN AT THE END
@tokychae i am so proud of them #blackpink #rosé #jennie #lisa #jisoo #fyp ♬ Pink Venom – BLACKPINK
While the members are global stars, headlining the Coachella mainstage was an extra special moment for South Korea. Not one to forget their roots, BLACKPINK decided to end their weekend one performance by thanking the crowd in Korean. Now whose cutting onions?
KIEL TUTIN JOINING THE GROUP ON STAGE
@sunwoosberrys bro they all absolutely DESTOYRED that stage #sunwoosberrys #lisa #kieltutin #blackpink #jennie #jisoo #rosé #coachella2023 #coachella #pinkchella ♬ FLOWER – JISOO
During their set, BLACKPINK was joined by a cadre of backup dancers. And in case you didn’t know, one of them was Kiel Tutin, BP’s choreographer who is responsible for making the moves to many of their biggest hits. It was a moment seeing the girls finally dancing alongside their choreographer. They really brought out the big guns for Coachella.
JENNIE’S VIRAL SPIEL
@emeteriopaulo This is gonna be me everywhere i go #blackpink #blink #jennie #coachella #kpop #kpopfyp ♬ MISS JENNIE SLAY – Paulo Emeterio
From Japan to California, always expect Jennie to give us that intro that will get us hyped. And that’s exactly what she did with her pop star intro at Coachella. Her energy and confidence had us screaming.
ROSE FEELING HERSELF
@ctrlchaennie She was there to make A STATEMENT!!! #rosé #coachella2023 ♬ Tally – BLACKPINK
The members oozed confidence the entire time. And no truer was this than for Rose. She was that pop star during her verse in Tally who made it known how she felt. If Rose had something to prove that night, she succeeded.
Continue Reading: 6 BLACKPINK Songs That Would Eat On The Coachella Main Stage
