The Two Iconic Artists Who Said ‘No’ to Headlining Coachella 2025
Both artists have valid reasons for turning down this amazing offer
As the new year approaches, Coachella is usually one of the first festivals to unveil a big part of its lineup. We still have a couple of months to go before the major headliners are announced. However, we already know of two big names who won’t be part of the next edition.
One of them is Kendrick Lamar. The rapper, who performed in the Colorado desert back in 2017, has turned down the offer for 2025 for two main reasons. First, he’s set to headline the Super Bowl Halftime Show. Lamar will squeeze two decades of his career into less than 15 minutes, but with the eyes of over 100 million viewers on him—a number that’s five times the capacity of Coachella (210,000 attendees).
The second reason, as reported by Bloomberg, is that Kendrick Lamar plans to announce a major stadium tour after his performance at the Super Bowl. This leaves a big gap to fill, especially since Lamar has been one of the most talked-about artists of 2024. Largely because of his ongoing back-and-forth with Drake, including a series of public jabs between the two.
Who Else Said ‘No’ to Coachella 2025?
The other artist who said ‘no’ to Coachella is Rihanna, and her reason is much simpler than her Loyalty collaborator’s. Despite her 2023 Super Bowl performance hinting at a return to music, Rihanna has stayed focused on her business empire.
Kendrick Lamar and Rihanna have declined the offer to headline Coachella 2025, Bloomberg reports. pic.twitter.com/VqFy7tNIDm
— Pop Base (@PopBase) October 7, 2024
Therefore, she has stepped away from the music industry. Along with Fenty Savage (her lingerie line) and Fenty Beauty (her cosmetics line), the ‘now more businesswoman than singer’ has also launched Fenty Hair (her haircare line).
This move, which came after her private performance at the wedding of an Indian billionaire, has further delayed the potential release of her ninth studio album. “I’m starting over, but I don’t want to ignore the songs I already have. I want to go back and listen to them with fresh ears, from my new perspective, and then decide which ones to keep and which songs I’m still in love with,” RiRi explained about the album that could follow Anti.
These two high-profile absences have put Coachella’s booking team in a tough spot, as they now need to act fast to secure (and lock in) a big headliner for the 2025 edition—someone who can really add value to the overall Coachella experience… And time is running out.