The Top Asian Acts You Don’t Want To Miss at Coachella 2022

 

☆ BY ANGELA HUANG  ☆

 
 

After three years, Coachella is finally back and it feels like a spot of respite to see the amount of Asian acts on the lineup, especially after the uptick of anti-Asian violence that spawned after those three long years in a global pandemic. This year, the festival isn’t just a celebration of music, but feels like a celebration of heritage. The Hu member Enkush shares, “We are glad to be representing Mongolia and hope to give our best to shed new lights to the Asian music genre. Our music has ways of connecting our traditional values to modern rock and it is something that we are proud to share with our fans. It is awesome to see so many Asians performing at the Coachella and offer new perspectives and attract all types of music lovers.”

To highlight the incredible roster of Asian acts at this year’s festival, here are our top picks for which artists you need to see this year at Coachella, from American mainstays to acclaimed artists a continent or two over. 

Rina Sawayama 

British pop phenom Rina Sawayama has been building her dynasty over the past few years. Literally– she released her critically acclaimed debut album Sawayama back in 2020 (which contains her sweeping hit “Dynasty”), and has been forging her throne ever since. From collaborating with Elton John to headlining her first tour, Sawayama somehow has made time to bless Indio valley. It feels like a birthright. 

NIKI

NIKI is no stranger to the main stage. After all, the Indonesian R&B singer opened for Taylor Swift when she was just 15. More recently, she’s been featured in Shang Chi soundtrack (her sunshiney bop song “Every Summertime” became a huge TikTok trend) and continues to collaborate with her labelmates at 88rising, who happens to be hosting “HEAD IN THE CLOUDS FOREVER” at Coachella. We can’t wait to hear her soulful, silky voice wrapping around the desert. 

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu

Picture this: it’s the early 2010’s, and you pull open Youtube to see a bubblegum pink- splattered room studded with claymation eyeballs. While many of us know Kyary Pamyu Pamyu from her viral hit “PONPONPON,” the JPop singer’s legacy extends far beyond one candy pink video — she’s been a star in Japan for years. The “J-Pop Princess" is sure to put on a show as playful and vibrant as her music videos.

EPIK HIGH

In the legacy of the mighty Korean music industry, hip-hop trio EPIK HIGH laid the groundwork for generations to come (RM from BTS cites the group as an early inspiration). The trio first made waves at Coachella in 2016, where they were the first major South Korean group to ever perform at the festival. Six years later, EPIK HIGH makes its well-deserved return to the stage. “Coachella added to Epik High’s North America Tour? Dream came true,” the guys say in a statement. “The last two years were tough for everyone, so we’re gonna go 1,000% to make the crowd forget the world and enjoy themselves.”

The Hu

The Hu is a Mongolian rock band whose music is deeply informed by their heritage. The band uses traditional Mongolian instruments, sings using Mongolian throat singing techniques, and incorporates Mongolian war cries into their music to create something completely new in the hallowed legacy of heavy metal. Jaya notes, “We think our debut in rock genre helps to offer a different style to the rock fans because of our unique tune. Low and soft volume of our music can be compared to the typical rock songs and that is something people were searching for instead of the same old music that they’ve gotten used to. We are the old and the new; the north and the west, what we mean by that is we bring modern and the vintage together so that everyone who are listening have a chance to experience the two polars at the same time.”

The genre-bending, culture blending rock band has millions of views on Youtube; to all those viewers, we suggest you see them in real life as well. 

Raveena 

Indian American musician Raveena makes dreamy R&B that goes down smooth as honey. She rounds out this year’s lineup of incredible queer artists, and her music explores the intersection of her identities in a divine and deliberate way.

Arooj Aftab

Pakistani musician Arooj Aftab continues to make history. After all, she’s the first Pakistani person to ever win a Grammy, and the first Pakistani artist to perform at Coachella. Her music–sung mostly in Urdu, and informed by ancient Sufi poetry– is transcendent and wondrous, and Aftab is sure to put on a performance as epic as her legacy. 

Japanese Breakfast

Crying in H Mart? More like Crying in Indio Valley, because Coachella’s lineup wouldn’t be complete without indie rock darling/bestselling novelist/all around icon Japanese Breakfast. Jbrekkie can make you feel the entire spectrum of human emotion in any medium, so don’t be surprised if her soul-bearing tunes leave you bawling in the California heat. 

Peggy Gou

House music’s resident Cool Girl Peggy Gou is back in the desert for another drippy DJ set. From her humble beginnings on SoundCloud to becoming a mainstay in the fashion and music scene, it feels only right that she’s scored her second slot at music’s biggest festival.

 
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