As the Friday headliner at the 2025 Coachella Festival, Lady Gaga reveals that she's incorporating a lot of Mayhem into the set and will bring "Gothic dreams" to her two-hour set in the desert.
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Gaga's last time performing at Coachella took place in 2017 — when she stepped in for Beyoncé's headlining spot at the festival following news that Queen Bey was pregnant with twins. Returning to the event as a headliner in 2025, Mother Monster reveals that she's bringing a completely new experience to fans.
"I don't want to give anything away, but I'll say that it's a completely different show to what I did the first time," Gaga tells Out. "It's going to incorporate a lot of the new record… and I'm so excited. I'm working on it with Parris Goebel, and we're really having a good time."
She adds, "Mayhem is, to me, a lot of Gothic dreams. I've realized that's been a part of my music since early in my career. So I'm just really thinking about the lighting, the feeling, the energy, and what I want to help people feel that night. It's amazing that I get a time slot where they're like, 'You get two hours to make people happy.' I'm going to do my best."
Lady Gaga in official teaser for Mayhem album.
Interscope Records
As many members of the LGBTQ+ community feel overwhelmed by real-world stresses, Gaga is more determined than ever to bring out and point to where happiness can me found — which is, in many ways, an interpretation that queer fans have embraced about Mayhem. Category is: dance or die!
"I just want to make people happy, so I hope that my queer fans feel happy listening to the music," Gaga says. "I'm sure it'll be fun to talk about it, and analyze it. I just want to contribute. To me, music is a gift and contribution to culture."
Gaga notes that "it's an honor to be in conversation with the queer community all of these years," adding: "Thank you so much for giving me so much inspiration. I definitely thought a lot about the community while I was working [on this new era], so I hope that my queer fans love it."
Lady Gaga's new album, Mayhem, is on all music streaming services. For tickets and more information on Gaga's headlining performances at Coachella, visit the festival's official website.
