This past Friday, April 14th, the Coachella Valley was flooded by festival-goers for the annual Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. With a star-studded lineup that includes artists like Bad Bunny, Calvin Harris, Rosalia, Frank Ocean, and many more, the festival never fails to attract festival-goers from around the world each year.

Among those in attendance this year were Rosary’s own Sophia Melendez ’23 and Alexa Rodriguez ’25. We took some time to interview both Sophia and Alexa and get the scoop on their experience at the infamous music festival.

Q: What performers did you see while there? Which were your favorite(s)?

Sophia: Some people I saw were Kali Uchis, Frank Ocean, Calvin Harris, Dominic Fike, and Bad Bunny. Kali was definitely my favorite because she is such a good performer, had great visuals, and brought out really cool people (like Tyler the Creator!).

Alexa: I saw a lot of DJs that I didn’t recognize, but my top three were Metro Boomin, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, and Labrinth. Metro Boomin brought out Future, 21 Savage, and The Weeknd, so that was AWESOME. I’ve loved A Boogie wit da Hoodie for a really long time, so getting to see him perform was surreal. Finally, Labrinth was incredible because he played all the songs from “Euphoria,” and the lighting made it amazing.

Q: Fashion is known to be a BIG thing at Coachella. Can you share some of your looks with us and share what went into compiling your outfits for the weekend?

Sophia:  I wanted to wear something cool but also comfortable because comfort is most important to me. For night one I did blue parachute pants, a green tank top, and a bucket hat. For night two, I did a black romper and gold chain headpiece. For night three, I did a white parachute skirt and a patterned long-sleeve top. I layered gold necklaces and wore sneakers with all my outfits!!

Alexa: On day one I wore neon for Bad Bunny, so my outfit included a bright orange bathing suit, a white mesh top, shorts, and fishnets. I wanted to do something kind of beachy, and my bag and glasses pulled the look together. I wore an iridescent purple bathing suit with black mesh sparkly pants and a holographic fanny pack for Frank Ocean. Out of my two looks my favorite was the orange one.

Q: Celebrities are known to fill the festival grounds each year. Did you happen to spot any?

Sophia: I didn’t see any big-time celebs, but I saw a few influencers.

Alexa: Most celebrities are not there, or they stay in the VIP section. Sometimes influencers come out for pictures or to get recognized.

Q: Lastly, we heard that food prices at the festival are insane. Is this true? If it is, was the food worth it?

Sophia: The food is expensive, but they have really good stuff. The pizza and açaí smoothies are my faves.

Alexa: Most of the foods were the normal price of food that you can get at a restaurant—besides a few overpriced foods. It was worth it because wherever I got food, it was usually my first meal of the day. I also liked that the food offered was from actual food joints, not just carnival foods.

It sounds like both Sophia and Alexa had nothing short of a picturesque Coachella experience. If you weren’t able to make your way out to the valley for the festival but you still want to have a glimpse into the Coachella experience, you can watch performance recaps and week two live streams at this link: https://www.youtube.com/coachella