J Balvin presented a show this Sunday that was out of this world. The Colombian artist turned his return to the Coachella festival, which is being held these days in the middle of the California desert, into an alien invasion. Always taking maximum care of his live concerts, the reggaeton star offered a number that meets the high expectations left by his previous performance at the festival, in 2019. Among Martians, UFOs and robots, actor Will Smith also appeared, who is still working on his social rehabilitation after the slap he gave Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars. Smith jumped onto the main stage dressed as Agent J, his character in the film saga men in black, to perform the theme of the first installment, from 1997.
J Balvin’s number began with a type recording War of the Worlds which announced the sighting of a spaceship. The landing site would be the Coachella desert, an announcer announced, imitating Orson Welles’ famous narration. The UFO appeared floating above the stage. The one from Medellín appeared out of nowhere in the middle of a semicircle elevated on the stage. My people rang and people immediately started twerking.
The artist soon let the public know that his show would not only be visual. For the second song he invited Puerto Ricans Jowell and Randy. Their presence elevated the party atmosphere. The first minutes of the concert brought more people together on the same stage than Peso Pluma on Friday and Blur on Saturday. In addition, they sang and danced. There was hope that Balvin had other tricks up his sleeve. The singing with height without Rosalía (they already did it together a few years ago). Minutes later the notes of The song, the popular song from his album Oasis. Bad Bunny, co-author of the song, did not appear either. This did not matter to the audience, who sang the lyrics at the top of their lungs while hundreds of purple laser beams crossed the black of the night.
Balvin has always set the bar high on his visits to the desert. The first time he performed at Coachella was in 2018, when he was invited by Beyoncé to sing a remix of My people in a performance that has been considered historic in the 25 years of the festival. The Colombian returned a year later alone. He had the pressure of being the big star of the urban genre at a festival mainstream. And boy did he deliver. She created a party atmosphere accompanied by huge caricatures of heads, produced by the FriendsWithYou collective. Critics considered it one of the best of 2019 and in the entire history of Coachella.
Will Smith appeared at the end, when Balvin had starred on stage in an abduction by aliens with oval heads and large black eyes. Agent J was focused on by the cameras and made many who were already leaving the place stop and listen to him. Phones came out of pockets to capture the theme of Men in black. In the end, Smith took out the neuralizer, the small device that his character and Tommy Lee Jones use in the film to erase memory. When she activated it, a message appeared on the screen: “Dance even in your darkest moments.”
Smith continues to work on recovering his reputation after the moment that tarnished his victory at the 2022 Oscars. In 2023 he appeared in just three concerts with DJ Jazzy Jeff, his partner in rap adventures in the nineties. This year he made two appearances in January. This Sunday, on the third day and closing of the first of the two Coachella weekends, has been his biggest platform.
His campaign has also gone through questionable moments. In December, the actor traveled to Saudi Arabia as a Hollywood ambassador and guest at the Red Sea International Film Festival. Michelle Williams, Chris Hemsworth, Johnny Depp and Halle Berry were also guests. According to the magazine Variety, Smith was paid a million dollars for the appearance. His visit, according to the specialized magazine, showed that Hollywood has lifted the punishment of the Saudi regime after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, in which the crown prince played a central role.
Smith’s appearance was one of the great moments of the third day. Hours before, a brief meeting of the Fugees had been much talked about among festivalgoers. But there were not many witnesses. Only those who came to hear YG Marley. During his number, his mother, Lauryn Hill, came out on stage to sing some of her hits. When she began to listen Killing Me Softly Another member of the legendary hip hop group of the nineties, the Haitian Wyclef Jean, came on stage. Only Pras was missing to complete the trio.
Doja Cat was in charge of closing the first weekend of Coachella 2024. And she did it true to her style, doing what she wants without caring about the public’s opinion. Her show, full of choreography, had too much production and no hits. She concentrated on promoting her most recent album, Scarlet, released last year, from which she performed 12 songs in her hour-and-a-half performance. The frustration of some was noticeable. As it was the last big concert of the night, it began to be one of the busiest, but as the audience moved forward without concessions, they began to disconnect to go hunt on other stages for the last notes of the DJs who were still playing.