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INDIO – Gisele Benavides, a San Diego native, attended the Coachella Festival at the Empire Polo Club for her second time in 2026.
The first was back in 2023, when Bad Bunny was announced as the first Latino to headline the iconic festival. Now she’s back to watch Karol G make history as the first Latina to headline.
“She’s here to make history and to be surrounded by Latinos celebrating our countries, waving our flags, it screams that we are here, Latina forever, as Karol (G) says,” Benavides said.
Benavides is a first-generation Mexican American and was born in National City, California. She has been surrounded by reggaeton all her life.
When she first heard of Karol G, she was listening to a song called “Ahora Me Llama” by Bad Bunny and Karol G, released in 2017.
She was already a fan of Bad Bunny, but instantly loved Karol G after that song, too.
Karol G’s performance at the Coachella Festival comes at a complex time for the Latine community after news broke out about activist Cesar Chavez earlier this spring.
Chavez, who was accused of sexually abusing girls during the height of the farm worker movement in the 1960s and 70s, according to the New York Times, has been in the spotlight in the past month, with his name being removed from streets, schools, and other public buildings.
“I think that her performance is needed,” Benavides said. “I don’t wanna say what he did was true or false, but it is still something that hit the community hard, and we needed that female empowerment.”
In 2022, Karol G made her Coachella debut with her signature blue hair, an energetic performance, and a love for her home, Colombia.
Now, only three years later, Karol G has stepped onto the Coachella main stage, solidifying her legacy by not only representing her home but also representing Latin America.
“There have been 27 years of this festival going on, and it’s the first time a Latina girl is headlining Coachella,” said Karol G during her performance on April 12.
While not the first Latine artist to perform at Coachella, this milestone has opened the door for more to enter.
“To see Bad Bunny and now Karol G on a stage watched by millions in a time where they are calling the Latino community out makes me proud,” Benavides said.
The Grammy-winning singer took the stage, starting with an animated folktale representing not only the transformation of a woman through the trials of nature, but also insinuating the current political realities facing the Latino community today.
In an interview with Playboy, Karol G shared that she has been repeatedly warned not to speak out against ICE, for fear that she might not be let into the country again.
Even when she was warned, she took a moment with the crowd to share her support for the Latine community.
“This is for my Latinos that have been struggling in this country lately,” Karol G said. “We stand for them. I stand for my Latino community. I’m very proud because this brings out the best of us, unity.”
Mexican American artist Becky G came out to sing with Karol G in their song, “MAMIII,” both weekends, but before she left the stage, Becky G shared some words supporting immigrant communities.
“Long live Mexico, long live Colombia, and long live our immigrants, whom we love so much,” Becky G said in Spanish.
In a male-dominated reggaetón scene, Karol G has become a leading voice in anthems focused on self-love, independence and confidence.
Karol G delivered a set that represented not only the Latine community but women’s empowerment with songs like “Provenza,” “Oki Doki,” “TQG,” and her biggest anthem, “Bichota.”
“(I wanted) to deliver something worthy of representing our people and everything we have always dreamed of showing,” said Karol G in an Instagram post celebrating completing the two festival weekends.
Other Latine artists also performed at the festival, such as Salvadoran cumbia band Los Hermanos Flores, Argentine American DJ Zulan and Colombian rock-pop band Morat.
Karol G closed out her headlining performance by announcing she will be going on tour, returning to Southern California with a show at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on August 14.
Benavides was very passionate about her Latine heritage and how this felt like a big step for the community and for herself.
“I am proud to be Mexican-American, Latina forever,” Benavides said in Spanish.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
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Editor’s note: City Times Media has updated its style guide to standardize the use of the word Chicane and/or Latine when referring to people together who identify as a person from, or whose ancestors were from, a Latin American land or culture. The Associated Press Stylebook recommends using the word Chicano/Latino.
Update, May 4: Story updated to include a link to a Spanish translation.
This story was edited by Itzel Martinez and Nadia Lavin.
