Travis Scott didn’t make an official appearance at Coachella 2022 this weekend, but he did perform at a nearby afterparty, TMZ and E! report. According to TMZ, Scott arrived at a venue in La Quinta around 3 a.m., and played five of his own songs during a brief DJ set. Pitchfork has reached out to Travis Scott’s representatives for further comment.
Scott was supposed to headline Coachella 2020 alongside Frank Ocean and Rage Against the Machine before the festival was cancelled due to COVID-19. Scott’s headliner status was called into question after the Astroworld 2021 tragedy that led to 10 people’s deaths.
Coachella 2022 originally tapped Kanye West, Billie Eilish, and Harry Styles as its headliners. However, two weeks before the first festival weekend was scheduled to take place, West backed out of the event. West suggested in February that he would cancel his set if Eilish did not apologize to Scott. West believed that Eilish had insulted Scott—whom West planned to bring out at Coachella—when she paused a show to assist a fan shortly after the Astroworld tragedy. Eilish said she “literally never said a thing about Travis” and “was just helping a fan.” The Weeknd and Swedish House Mafia are headlining in West’s place.
In recent weeks, Scott performed live for the first time since the Astroworld tragedy and promotional billboards for his new album Utopia appeared along a highway in California.
Follow along with Pitchfork’s full coverage of Coachella 2022.
