What Coachella Understands about Branding No One Else Does

0:00Coachella just wrapped six days of business,$200 million in revenue,$68 million in profit, and$870 million in earned media during weekend one alone. Justin Bieber headlined as the highest paid artist in festival history at$10 million. His brand Skylark made$15 million in merch across both weekends, more than any Coachella act has ever done by a landslide. There's no doubt the Bieber effect is real, but here's what nobody's talking about. Coachella generated nearly a billion dollars in earned media, but their social strategy still left money on the table. That's what we're getting into today. Let's go.

0:31I know you weren't feeling super well over the last couple of days because Bieber fever really hits you hard. But are you fully recovered from Coachella? Absolutely recovered. That was the set of the year. Set of the decade. The price admission was worth just Bieber's performance from weekend one. Yeah. But I think we kind of got snubbed. Weekend one, I feel like we got snubbed, man. Weekend two, he remembered who he was. I feel like everyone came out for weekend two. And that's usually it's the opposite. Dude, it's all good. It's all good. I'm recovered now. Me too. You enjoyed your time? My sleep score was a cumulative like 38 the whole time we were there.

1:03but it was one of the best weekends ever. So much fun. But today I'm really excited to break down all of the media side of it and what makes this engine run because I think there's something that every single person can take from it and put it into the business that they're running. What's also crazy is the first year I ever went to Coachella was 2013. Tickets, I believe, were$375. Bro, inflation's hitting the gas and it's hitting Coachella. And now it's 625, I believe, for GA. So we went GA, which is, you know, regular degular. What's also funny, 2023 for Frank Ocean, I decided for the first time ever to invest in VIP.

1:46This time around, I was like, is it really that worth it? So I went GA, really regretted it. If I ever go back to Coachella, I got to go at least VIP. Oh, really? Okay. You really regretted it. longer walk times to get into the festival. Dude, time is money. Time is money and longer food lines. And so I think that all that accumulates to you not being able to see as many sets as you want. I like the way you're thinking. Yeah. I like the way you think. Cause I thought the same thing. I was over the walk, man. And also, dude, I don't want to be in lines, man. I don't want to be in lines. Okay. Yeah.

2:20I'm old, too old to be in sitting in lines. I'm like, can we pay to get past these lines? Yeah. You know, that's what I'm trying to figure out. Listen, what's funny though, before, before we get into this, there was for Bieber day, there was about an hour and 15 minute wait just to get in past security. Right. It was like insane backup. So I'm sitting there wondering like, who's running the show? Who's in charge, man. And as soon as we get to the front, I realized the guy in charge there is probably like eight claws deep. And I'm like, is you guys having fun? I'm like, no, I'm not having fun. It's hot as shit.

2:49We're sitting under the beating sun. And then you guys are hammered up here running the show. No, they're there, dude. These guys, these guys are running the gate. When you get up there, I'm like, oh, that's why it's taken 19 years to get through this thing. I will say good in all my years of going to Coachella, never been pat down less getting through security. Take that as you will. I walked in with a couple of white claws in my back pocket. They didn't even check. They're not there for that, man. No. Anyways, everybody was there for Bieber and we want to talk about him setting records and how much money Bieber actually generated for the festival because the Bieber effect was real.

3:26And as someone who has gone quite a few times to Coachella, I've, I always know that it's going to be busy and there's a lot of people, but this year was on another level. And I think you saw it too, with how many people were just trying to get in. Like I've never, I've only been twice, but the lines that I saw from previous years were not like that at all you could just walk right in like sure you weren't really waiting in a line even in ga like i had went ga you just walked right up there's maybe 15 people in front of you you popped right in that day of his of his set was insane and also to just get out of the festival took an hour and like 30 minutes and you were in bumper to bumper traffic it was kind of terrifying like you were literally just stuck with people and then there was a period of time as you were leaving where you couldn't even leave like you were just standing there you're just like this is actually insane kind of Kind of trippy, but thank God everyone was on their best behavior and we made it out.

4:16Okay. So some of the records that he broke was one, he was the highest paid headliner in Coachella history at$10 million. Could have paid him more. Should have probably paid him more. I think they could have doubled up on it. Wouldn't even have affected. Wouldn't even have made a dent. A hundred percent. And what's also crazy is his new brand, Skylark, which he just dropped, generated$5 million in just weekend one, but$15 million across both weekends. And the$5 million number dominated anyone in history. Oh, yeah. Like it was, I believe they said like two and a half times. Yeah, the previous record was$1.7 million for both weekends.

4:52So weekend one already, it dominated. I wasn't standing in line for that hoodie, man. I'm not doing it. Oh, we got it. You got it. Yeah, but we went at a time. No, sorry. Josh was there and they went, waited in line. And I texted him. I was like, can you grab me one and we'll Venmo you? So we didn't actually have to wait in line. Oh, wow. That's really clutch. You clutched up. I saw that line. I was like, there's just no way. I don't love it. It was like a few hour long line. I don't like anybody this much to get to wait this line. To say hoodie though. Really? Yeah. You're going to be jealous when you see me rocking it, but it's all good.

5:22I won't be jealous. But that's good that you did get to skip the line. That's pretty clutch. A few things or a few reasons why I believe or we believe that Bieber was able to break these records like he did. One, it's just Justin fucking Bieber. Also, you had this effect of people not being able to see him live for so many years. Yeah, he didn't perform. He hasn't performed at a major festival in over five years. And there was a whole controversy with Bieber where he was going to go on tour and then health stuff happens and he pulled out. And so he didn't end up going on tour. You had all those fans that were craving to see him live.

5:59So, okay, you also have a group that may or may not have ever been to Coachella. Sure. that also is like, I'm only going for this headliner specifically. I was really excited for just like, that was why I wanted to go. The only other time I had ever, uh, like specifically gone for one headliner was the year of Frank Ocean. That worked out well for you. Didn't work out super well. Me and Frank are still beefing to this day. Um, but yeah, Bieber has the effect and has the ability to get people to just come out because of how massive of a superstar he is. And I think people forgot because he had kind of been out of the limelight and not performed, you kind of forget how much clout and how much pull he actually has as an artist.

6:44And yeah, Coachella took the bet and it 100 % paid off. Did you ever go over to the area where his merch was? Yes, and it had that little blue box, right? That we're talking about? Yeah. I didn't go, I didn't go inside. I honestly, I didn't look at the merchandise at all. I didn't look at anyone's merch stuff. So what's interesting about merch at Coachella, at least earlier on, is it was normally just like the main Coachella merch tent. I see, okay. And you go and they have everything up and you can decide which you want. I think over the last couple of years, brands and specific artists started doing pop-up activations And Bieber kind of took his to a whole nother level.

7:27He had a whole world built out that you could go. It was like a full on experience to go get his merch, but also he had an activation. So he created a place for people to go not only get his merch, but create content around that. And that generates that's earned media right there as well. You also you have so many regular people that are filming in the, you know, in the merch booth. right so like you're seeing all that stuff on reels and on tiktok you know what's crazy too is when the festival ended on friday night and we're obviously in coachella valley and you go back dude ig's algorithm very strong tiktok it hits you with all kinds of coachella stuff so you're getting like merch people you're getting food reviews like it knows you're there right you're in that geolocation you're getting fed with all that stuff and i i saw a few videos of like the booths and what they looked like but i i didn't like walk into them because the lines were so ridiculously long but there was thousands and thousands tens of thousands of videos being created and you got to think about all the cumulative views that all of those bring in so like then it creates a fomo effect for weekend two because people are saying how long i saw like the line was three hours to get this hoodie well then in weekend two you have people that are like staking it out as soon as they walk in like that's where they're going his merch feels almost like an artifact that you can buy from that specific time.

8:47The Skylark hoodie that we ended up buying has his Coachella dates on the back. Normally when an artist puts out merch or if they put out a clothing line, for example, before he had Skylark, he put out Drew House. You can get limited drops, but to pair a limited drop with the dates behind such an iconic performance adds to people wanting to get like that hoodie specifically from Coachella because they know they're not going to be able to get it again. Yeah. And I mean, like you're saying, it's not just, oh, here's the hoodie and it's just in a white room. It's like there is a world here. And I think that all brands, all creators can steal something from that playbook.

9:28Like we should be building out a world and it should feel like this person's home when you walk into it. And building out like a specific moment as well. Yeah. And I mean, his stage kind of looked like the the Skylark uh like kind of you know what I'm talking about like his stage with that weird sculpture thing kind of made it look like their their world that they were building for for the same with Sabrina Sabrina did the same thing at her show like the the backdrop and all of the different things that come along with the set like felt very her and yeah if you like went to her Instagram which is interesting it kind of felt like it was like a parallel which which makes sense like it's all branding but like the stuff that's on her feed it went right into the world And I actually drove by there.

10:09There did a pop up at a gas station. It was like five minutes away from our hotel. And I saw it. I'm like, ah, like it looks exactly very similar to what the actual set looked like. And all those little details kind of go together. You bring up an interesting point, though, about world building. And I think that brands now I think brands are starting to do a better. I think they're in on it. A better job. Some of them. um jt barnett actually made some pretty interesting content around uh like brand activations around coachella and and who's doing it well but i think that gap did well gap did super what kind of a comeback yeah and well i mean they also you know for sure they paid central c an obscene amount of money to wear that hoodie there's no way that you think that they 100 absolutely that's another thing though that the brands don't have to disclose it's like some cheeky marketing shit it's not like you have you know a committee that's like you have to disclose you're wearing this hoodie i think they did something smart i think they hit him up and were like hey what's it gonna cost to go on with our hoodie on bang you know i believe i believe his merch was also gap i could be totally making that up but i'm almost positive it was so there's a little collaboration going on there but that i mean that's a strong cultural moment and they had a ridiculous line too it was like hours long it was the longest one of the longest lines of the festival.

11:25I remember seeing it. It was just snaking all the way out. Our good buddies at Artlist just dropped Artlist Studio, and this is insane. Before this was released, we got to go to New York and see this live in action. What you're able to do with Artlist that you haven't been able to do before is have consistency across characters that you're building in their AI software. Where I think this could actually be really useful for us personally is using this for our director's treatments. A lot of the times I'm looking for a very specific shot, and let's say I find the shot, finding other moments to go with it are nearly impossible.

11:52Now what I'll be able to do with art list is create my own little unique world and build frames off of that that I can use into my director's treatments. I can keep the consistency across my characters, consistency across locations. I can use whatever specific camera I would be shooting on. I can change the angle. I could change the lighting. All that stuff can be controlled now in their software. And I can even host it across different projects, which is really cool. So let's say I was pitching on multiple different things at once. I could have different boards for all of these specific projects.

12:18It is the most powerful AI studio platform to date. And right now, if you sign it for their AI pro plan, you actually get 50 ,000 credits for the next seven days. So you better act fast. Go check it out. It's the top link in the description. Let's keep it rolling. Something that I learned when I was touring with Loud Luxury, because I asked them about performing Coachella, because I'm like, you guys are easily big enough of an artist and do enough big festivals to be able to play Coachella. But they told me that every artist typically only does Coachella once, typically, like 90 to 95 percent.

12:48There's a few artists, Disclosure performed this year for, I believe the third time Rufus DeSouza performed like three or four times. But they learned that from Tiesto. They said, because most artists only perform probably once, you have to choose the right moment to headline. And so I think the reason why Bieber decided to do Coachella this year is because in 2025, he dropped Swag One and Two. So there's a reason for him to do the performance. And so I think you can also look at the performance as, yes, he headlined Coachella, but it's also a huge marketing play for one, his album. This tour potential.

13:31The tour potential and launching this new clothing line. And we hear that there's supposed to be a Netflix doc about the buildup that's in the works. So you have like a little quadruple, you know, punch happening all at once. And if he drops this tour, people are so like hot off of the press for wanting to see him live and then you have i even think he had a better performance weekend too like you told me that's what you're saying i didn't get to watch the performance weekend too but a lot of people are saying that it was better and i was super happy with weekend one yeah so you know i think um keeps people wanting more you're like okay you're dropping you're dropping another show i'll go on the topic of the netflix documentary that bieber is supposedly putting out this happened for the first time i believe in 2018 when Beyonce performed.

14:16She was the first one to do a Netflix documentary around her performance. And that's interesting because like you just brought up, this person or this brand is getting multiple squeezes out of the orange. And it's not just like, let me go on stage and perform. It's like, let me put, let me invest a lot of money into stage production around a new album or announcing a tour that I'm going to do, putting out different merch, and then also double dipping and creating even more media. And you get, you get all this attention around, you know, weekend one and weekend two, then the, then the doc comes out and you get, you're almost repurposing the performance in another way, AKA.

15:03Dude, Bieber had a YouTube video, cut it down to short form. You know what I'm saying? That's the play. That is the play the creators can take from this, man. You have your like long form, bigger thing. And then you got the snackable pieces that kind of come along with it. Yeah. And, you know, we're talking about, you know, brands activating. And there's so many different ways that you can obviously have the brand activation is like the world build out. You're selling the merch, but then you're creating so many different pieces of content around the activation that you're creating. And like if you're a creator or a brand, think about how many different ways you can, you know, squeeze the juice out of this thing that you're creating and how many ways can you repurpose content and, you know, drive as much attention as you can to what you're building out.

15:48So Coachella posted on Instagram specifically, 234 times from April 9th to today. Which is funny because I was looking at you counting and you counted individually and I so badly wanted to look at you and say, you can just count the rows and And then multiply by three. I didn't think there was going to be that many. I thought there was only like 15 rows, man. I didn't realize it was going to go that long. But anyways, 234, like, could be way more, dude. Okay, let me just, let me go back. My time at the Lakers, if we had a banger playoff night, I could leave the night, me personally contributing 12 or 13 pieces myself.

16:26Sure. Just me. So realistically, at the end of the night, I remember like big games where I'd go back and total them up because I was always curious. we'd post 50 something times in an evening and i think that for bieber alone bieber alone yeah 15 20 could have went up and no one would have batted an eye and i think a big a big problem that a lot of brands uh like they think is if like oh if we post a ton it kind of like dilutes this moment everyone's not going to see everything like no one's going to see every single thing you post unless they want to like unless they're consuming it and they're like want more i was one of the people that wanted more.

17:01I would have loved to see like 20 posts from Bieber's thing. I would have loved to see him walking out in the crowd going absolutely ballistic. Same thing with Sabrina. Same thing with Carol G. Those are moments that I think they didn't capitalize on. They posted only a few different things from the bigger sets. And I'm like, why are we not getting like iPhone from the crowd? There should have been like a Coachella shooter iPhone in the crowd. Boom, front row. They get the clip. It's posted immediately. It should have been posted like in real time something i think coachella could have done a better job of one yes more iphone stuff but having like coachella creators specifically on the ground the coachella creators club we're going to start that that's what needs to happen sign us sign us i think that because it's such a moment and people are granted there are it's so interesting because i was i was watching a mao p interview of him talking about coachella and he's like i actually didn't understand and fully comprehend how big Coachella was going to be for me as an artist.

18:01He's like, I knew that there was a ton of people at the festival, but he's like, there's millions of people on social media watching the live stream. He's like, it has the opportunity to really put an artist into the stratosphere. I remember it happened with Fred again. Fred again had an insane Coachella set and it kind of started him on this insane trajectory so what i think that coachella missed out on is just raw iphone stuff quick flip dude that's quick flip that's the difference maker behind the scenes like people want to see what it's like in the artist section behind the scenes i also think that they they missed the mark i think coachella missed the mark on really showcasing everything that encompasses the festival.

18:53I think they were a little too heavy on the performances themselves. I think they didn't post enough even about all of the performances that were happening, but the fans are such a big part of the festival. And there was a few carousels. Like I saw one that was the people that were at the barricade for Carol G. So there was like a collaborate, or not a collaboration, a carousel of like 10 or 15 fans that were like posted up in their fits that were specific to like her thing. That's great. Photos? Yeah, photos. There should have been more of that though. It should have been like the, dude, the Bieber barricade run should have been a thing.

19:28Why are we not on a Ronin following them to the barricade? Like full sprint, like see who's going to get there first. Like, why aren't you interviewing some of these fans? That's what I'm saying. We should have been like, it should have been mini Mike and be like, who's going to get the barricade first? This guy's like, I ran track in college. I'm for sure getting to the barricade first. And then it's a full sprint. Like they should have been on a golf cart. Golf cart ready? 100%. Barricade, yeah, exactly. Like, what's your favorite song? What are you most excited to see tonight? Like, that's the easy snackable shit.

19:53And if they don't want the feed to look all ugly with like UGC shit, just hide it in reels. That's what should happen. Because the quality of stuff that they posted was like, it's elite. It's like very high quality shit. Like really nice quality video, very high quality photography. It looks really pristine. I think we're missing just those other, it's tens of millions of eyeballs that could just be grabbed for very low lift stuff. That was missing. Another thing that, and I'm assuming Coachella does this on purpose. I don't know why. Okay, tell me. Whenever they're posting videos of the artists performing, it's never the fucking hit.

20:28Why are you not playing? Nah, it's got to be a problem. There has to be a problem with that. In my mind, I saw a video of them post Foster the People performing. Why are you not posting pumped up kicks? With everyone singing. That's what I'm saying. going nuts espresso i should see espresso you know or don't you think that don't you okay another big thing about coachella is there's um everybody always talks about how the uh the the crowds are dead okay i think they needed to post more stuff like in the pit or nga of people like raging or singing along because then it goes to show the actual fan experience i think they showcased such high quality of the artist yeah show me what it's like to like actually be at the festival in the crowd raging really enjoying we should have had a little insta 360 cam or something so like pov camera glasses camera something of like the actual performance in the pit or in an area where people were going off that would have been more fun you know it's funny i i didn't the areas that i was in everyone was singing i did i was never around a group where it was like people were standing straight up dude it's funny because they're i agree and even in the back too because i was and people were dancing people were having a good time it was fun i'll tell you something coachella nowadays looks very different for me compared to when i was first couple years mainly i still got that dog in me i still kind of want to you know push up front of the front of the crowd kind of rage and sarah catherine a little more reserved a little anxious with the big crowds doesn't love to get in there and i'm like maybe we should get a little closer a little far in the back but even when you're in the back uh even when you're in the back people are still dancing but i just think it's so funny because coachella has such a reputation for being this like influencer olympics crowds are dead uh people should be raging a lot harder and i think that that's just kind of what you see dude i think you'll find whatever you want to find yeah if you want to see that you only see that i was like i feel like that's the people that are looking for a reason to be in a shitty mood sure like i i never even was like looking left and right oh my god there's people taking pictures you ever been to fucking Disneyland it's the same shit dude it's the same exact thing just with families you know what I'm saying you know who had one of the best crowds to bunt yeah I was on the hill for that dude he played a really good little mashup and then he went in the crowd yeah you know what I'm talking about it was really good good for that guy um but long story short when it comes to Coachella and their social strategy it's the it's honestly the main reason why we wanted to make this episode part like obviously we went to Coachella we mainly went for Bieber and that was amazing we were just genuinely shocked as two guys who make content for brands every single week how much of a missed opportunity we felt like they had I think also there should have been a there should have been a BTS Coachella vlog okay hear me out there should have been a 15 to 20 minute long Coachella vlog from the day like 6 a.m to to like the day the last song of the day so you bop around to like all the different artists or all your bigger headliners or whatever and you also should be like interviewing people i i also love there's so much um so much media that gets repurposed by random brands that like show up and do like a mic series yeah there was one where it was like this one dude i don't know what his name is i don't know the outlet but he was like this is your guide to coachella 2026 all these brands are like hopping on their moment and they have the opportunity to just shit on all their moments because they have the access it's like you're going backstage maybe they're right behind the golf cart where the Bieber's driving up in it's like all those little moments that otherwise are like not possible to get that only you get if you have access at the festival another reason why and I just thought of this while you're talking another reason why I think they need to squeeze the juice more is because they're in business six days out of the year crazy so your your engagement and opportunity to post content throughout the year is a lot slimmer.

24:38Obviously, there's so much content that they can like repurpose and stuff throughout the year. But it's like, while the event's going on, why not go as hard as you can? And so the pre-sale for next year is going to go live in about eight days, which is crazy. So I'd anticipate leading up to the eight days, I already got a text. They're already texting you. They're like, hey, we're going to go live in eight days. Get your ticket pre-order it'll be the cheapest that it'll be they're riding the hype of the moment to get them back for round two okay this is something to take okay if you're making videos or photos you're doing shit for clients okay hear me out as soon as you deliver the thing and they're the most freaking happy or they've loved working with you you got a result boom it's talk about the next thing yeah it's lock in for the next thing and that way they're like at their peak happiness moment and they're running up the other time is like when people are the most sad okay so when When someone comes to you and they have a huge problem and they need it fixed, that's when you can sell people's shit.

25:32They're like, I have a huge problem and I need this tomorrow. Great. That's a moment that you can sell something. Or the moment people are super fired up and they're like, this was the best thing ever. Boom. Then we go in for the sell. I.E. They're going in for the sell right now. We're all super happy. You still have the serotonin boost of seeing the content. They're like, oh, by the way, the ticket's on sale. Boom. Gets you while you're hot. 100%. You know what I'm saying? They're like right in there. Something we didn't bring up about Bieber and his actual performance is the nostalgia play.

26:00Oh, the YouTube. With the YouTube. Okay, do you think YouTube paid for that shit? What do you think? What, for him to have YouTube premium? No, just I'm saying for him to... Can you imagine him doing ads? No, just for him to integrate that into the set. You don't think there's a play there? You really don't think there's a play there? For YouTube specifically? I think he called YouTube and said, this is what I'm thinking. toss your brother the bag. Oh, you think that YouTube paid Bieber? If Justin is a smart lad, which I believe Justin Bieber is a smart lad, I would have called YouTube and said, listen, I'm thinking of doing this.

26:36I want$5 million. Could have. I also... Do you think he did that? No. Really? Yeah, I don't think he called YouTube. I'd capitalize it. Dude, anything I'm wearing, I'm like, yeah, I'm wearing this hat. $5 million. Million dollars. Million dollars for the hat. Yeah. No, I mean, he's just... YouTube also integrated at Coachella's. That's why I think there is some sort of play there. Leaving Weekend 1, I had some mixed reviews about his set. From people or from yourself? From myself. Okay. I think he has arguably the best voice of any artist I've heard live. And I think it's hard to argue because he sounds fucking incredible.

27:19He sounds better live than he does on his actual recordings. What I was frustrated with personally, a personal expectation was I wanted to hear more music from Justice and Purpose. And I understand him wanting to play a lot of music from his new albums. And I thought it was cool how he did the YouTube stuff. just as a fan. I've gone to I've gone to shows where an artist hasn't played like one song that you really want to hear. And I'm like, damn, that's a bummer. But Bieber has so many hits that I'm like, damn, I wish you would have played slightly less of like the new stuff and a little bit more from Purpose and Justice.

28:04But then the other thing is as cool as the YouTube stuff was. and I think I understood the play a little bit more after the fact because he was just playing one minute snippets it was like you were getting into a song and then he stopped it and then there was a little bit of a lull and then he went into the next one and I'm like dude I was just jammed like he what for me personally he wasn't a little longer wanted a little bit longer a little bit longer but anyways long story short I think nostalgia is something a lot of brands need to start incorporating more into their marketing because the reaction that people had on social media to the nostalgia play that Bieber did, granted, it's kind of like a unicorn thing because Bieber's a one-on-one.

28:50We kind of grew up with him on YouTube. That's how we got his start. And so I thought it was cool that he did pull up the YouTube stuff. But I think that as a brand or a creator, if you can lean into the stuff that you grew up with and the nostalgia play, it hits a certain part of somebody's soul and makes somebody want to interact with you as a creator or a brand more. Without a doubt. Let's talk about the business model. Okay. Okay. This is interesting. So GA brings in$96 million, 96.1. Okay. VIP, 31.2 million. Sponsorships, 25 million. F &B, 22 million. What's F &B? Food and beverage. Food and beverage, 22 million.

29:33Merch, 10 million dollars. Shuttle, seven and a half. Parking and camping, 6 million. And the hotel package is 2.9. You had no idea what food and B was, huh? I was like, dude, shit. I have no idea what F &B could be, man. That's a crazy, 22 million dollars. Is that Facebook? Yeah, that's exactly what I thought. But they seemingly net about 68, 69 million dollars. So 34 % margins. Pretty profitable. You know what's crazy though is the first year they ever ran Coachella, they lost like 900k, the three guys. Yeah. It's amazing. They could have totally stopped. They were 900k in the hole. They just kept.

30:09They were like, we got something here. Kept, kept going. The sponsorships is an interesting thing because of how culturally relevant Coachella is, brands are willing to pay mad bread just to be there. like you were saying gap had an activation i wonder how much gap had to pay just to be able to activate at coachella did i mean multiple millions has to be has to be multiple millions but the reason why it's worth it is not because like it's like you got a hundred and or 220 ish thousand people from weekend one and weekend two to be like walking around it's a it's you know it's a free ad but i think not a free added paid a lot for the ad not a free ad here's what's interesting for a artist to make it onto the bill and perform at coachella is the it's like something you would put on your resume yeah it's like i have performed at coachella it is a stamp of approval and i feel like it is the same way with the brand if a brand is able to activate at Coachella, it ups their cool points a little bit.