How ‘The Coachella Effect’ has changed over the years
As ticket prices skyrocket and attendance declines, Coachella performers can still use their appearances there to break into the mainstream.
by Sarah Kloboves of Chartmetric Blog
Year after year, the Coachella Music Festival assumes its place as one of the most culturally influential music events across the globe. Coachella 2024 started slightly on the left foot compared to previous years, which are known to sell out on the same day the lineup drops. According to Billboard, it took approximately 27 days, four hours, and 38 minutes to sell out Weekend 1. Passes for Weekend 2 also remained on the market as of April 19 — a first since its two-weekend expansion in 2012. In a world where ticket sales are often equated to listening and social engagement, this begs the question: Is Coachella still moving the needle?
Effect on Engagement 2023 vs. 2024
From Frank Ocean’s ice rink flop to stand-out performances by Labrinth and Rosalía (2023’s highest gainers by Spotify monthly listeners), Coachella 2023 would be a tough one to beat in terms of buzz. According to values measured from the Saturday before Weekend 1 to the last day of Weekend 2, artists in 2023 had larger gains in Spotify monthly listeners and Instagram followers than the 2024 lineup. On the other hand, the increase in Chartmetric artist score (an aggregate of various measures of success) was over 13 percentage points higher for artists this year than the last.
With a majority American audience, Spotify and Instagram are the usual go-tos when analyzing listening and social engagement. Though numbers were slightly down for both platforms this year, a rise in Chartmetric artist scores may imply that more engagement is happening outside the typical spaces. TikTok, for example, has been buzzing over the past few weeks as fans got to experience everything from Grime’s screaming to Kid Cudi breaking his foot — all from the comfort of their own homes. YouTube also proves to be more crucial for Western artists as music becomes more global. The festival further reflects this, as several K-Pop and Afrobeats acts were listed within the first three rows of artist names in the lineup.
While the festival’s ability to generate press and media buzz certainly plays a significant factor in these numbers, the other bulk of the leg work actually falls upon the artists themselves. In Chartmetric’s 2023 study on the Coachella Effect, some of the largest gainers in terms of Spotify monthly listeners and Chartmetric artist scores were those that effectively timed fan opportunities around their performances. KAYTRANADA, for example, his slot to debut “KAYTRAMINÉ,” a musical project with rapper Aminé. With both the collaboration and a stellar Coachella performance, KAYTRANADA was able to significantly boost his Spotify listening, as well as social engagement on platforms like TikTok.
In 2024, DJ Snake was the top gainer in Chartmetric artist score. Though this might come as a surprise, considering a bulk of the headlines this year covered artists in the second and third slots, Snake’s growth can be attributed to his recent collaboration with the sixth highest-ranked artist, Peso Pluma. Using Weekend 1 to tease the track “Teka” during his set, the duo officially released the song on April 17 and has since received over 4 million streams. Mixing both tactics of timing and collaborations, Snake and Pluma effectively tapped into one another’s fanbases to skyrocket “Teka” into the mainstream.
While outliers may affect the overall averages from year to year, it still shows how a festival and its lineup can work together and double dip on engagement. For example, it’s quite possible that 2023 saw more artists releasing projects around that time, ultimately boosting streaming averages. It’s also possible that 2023 had more performance standouts or snafus, creating a more considerable buzz in the headlines and further impacting metrics for social engagement. Regardless, this festival remains a major cultural zeitgeist despite a lack of ticket sales this year, and has still given many artists the opportunity to grow their audiences.
More stars that made their mark in 2024
Deciding which artists truly experienced “The Coachella Effect” largely depends on the platform.
From a streaming angle, Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter, and Bizarrap took the lead as this year’s top three by increase in Spotify monthly listeners. Roan in particular has had a stunning surge, starting April with under 3 million monthly listeners and now just shy of 10 million as of April 26. Her rise to the top has been a bit of an outlier for the year’s festival, raising the average stats across the board: for example, the average growth in Spotify monthly listeners for performers (excluding Roan) between the Saturday before Coachella (April 6) to the last day of the festival (April 21) was 2.24%. However, when you add in Roan and her remarkable 114% growth, the average balloons to 3%. The femininomenon has been growing steadily over the past few months, aided by her opening billing on the Olivia Rodrigo GUTS tour and a viral showing on NPR’s Tiny Desk, but her Coachella appearances catapulted her to the top.
It’s also worth noting that nearly half of the top 10 artists by listener growth are electronic acts. While electronic music has always been a part of the Coachella universe, its impact has significantly grown in the past few years — so much so that organizers built an entirely new, electronic music-specific stage for 2024. Housing several 3-hour extended b2bs from artists like Rüfüs Du Sol and Eric Prydz, other producers like Gesaffelstein and Purple Disco Machine used their Coachella 2024 slot to debut new projects and sounds that took over everything from streaming to socials.
Another monumental streaming gain that was paired with the release of an album came from the iconic rocker Gwen Stefani and her band No Doubt. From the Saturday before Weekend 1 to the last day of Weekend 2, the band gained over 787k Spotify listeners, securing them the No. 8 slot. According to Billboard, consumption of the band’s overall catalog grew 85% after Weekend 1 alone.
On socials, 2024 was a year for the girlies, as the top nine acts by new Instagram followers were all women. At No. 1, Lana Del Rey dominated with a gain of over 800k followers. By overall percentage growth, Chappell Roan took the cake yet again, growing her followers by 45.12%.
Some of the most talked-about acts this year were young burgeoning female pop stars, namely Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan. Near the top of the lists for the highest growth in all three metrics analyzed (Instagram followers, Spotify monthly listeners, and Chartmetric artist score), the success of these artists is a clear sign that music industry is undergoing a pop girl revolution. Reneé Rapp was also a breakout star along the same vein, making headlines when she had the cast of the cult classic show The L Word introduce her at the start of her set.
K-Pop acts also show a notable amount of engagement on socials, with groups LE SSERAFIM and ATEEZ landing in the No. 8 and No. 10 slots, respectively. The genre’s growing popularity at the festival has been noted in the past several years, as acts like BLACKPINK have become among the first groups in history to land a headlining slot.
Artist takeaways and the future of “The Coachella Effect”
For the dozens of articles released annually about “The Coachella Effect” or “The Coachella Bump,” the question remains the same: How can smaller, developing artists take lessons from moments like these? Well, the reality is that everyone’s “Coachella” may look a bit different. For some, maybe it’s landing a headline show at a favorite hometown venue. For others, it may be the opportunity to open for a favorite band. No matter what this moment is, the preparation remains the same.
Timing is key. Planning releases around significant moments in your artist career can help bolster engagement and increase the chances for exposure. Collaborations are also monumental towards double-dipping on different fan bases. You may not be working with someone like Peso Pluma, but finding artists who are similar to your level, or even a step or two above, can allow you to tap into new opportunities. And last but not least, use any opportunity you can to pour fuel on the fire. Double down on what’s working, and bring that to the forefront of your fans’ attention whenever you have the opportunity to engage with them.
While the future impact of The Coachella Effect remains unclear, inflation and rising ticket prices may continue to negatively affect concert events like these worldwide. Still, as die-hard listeners and superfans become increasingly important, fans who want to be there will ensure that they’re standing in the front row.
Graphics and writing help by Nicki Camberg; Cover image by Crasianne Tirado
