Karol G on Being First Latina to Headline Coachella

Karol G is opening up about how it really felt to make history earlier this year as the first Latina artist to headline Coachella. “The fact that I was the first one just feels wrong — it feels incorrect,” the Colombian superstar said in a recent cover story for Elle.

Karol G was even bold enough to share her unfiltered thoughts with Paul Tollett, CEO of Goldenvoice, Coachella’s promoter. “I mentioned how crazy it was that it took 27 years [since] the festival [began] to finally bring a Latina to the stage as a headliner,” she said in the interview.

Karol revealed that the conversation came up when Tollet visited the star in her trailer after she closed out the first weekend with a stunning performance. “He was very kind. He said, ‘I should apologize,’” Karol recalls, adding, “I didn’t want to make him feel bad, but he acknowledged that it was the reality …Before me, there were so many who could have undoubtedly filled that spot. What if Daddy Yankee had headlined Coachella? Or Ricky Martin, Enrique Iglesias, Gloria Estefan, Shakira?”

She’s got a point. In the music festival’s nearly 30-year history, only two Latin acts have shutdown the main stage, and both performed this decade. Bad Bunny, who headlined in 2023, made history as the first Latin musician to headline the festival. By then, it was long overdue.

Karol made the most out of her big moment, though, celebrating her Colombian culture and that of Latinos overall. At one point, the singer urged her fans to “feel proud, raise your flag.” During her set for Coachella’s final weekend, Karol also used the national stage to tease her Viajando Por El Mundo global tour. In the coming weeks, the Colombian star will kick off the 39-date stadium trek in Chicago at Soldier Field.