The Coachella festival, which begins next weekend, has always been about much more than a glitzy lineup filled with A-list artists. The outfits of the celebrities who attended every year the musical event with the most paparazzi per square meter in the world focused all the attention. As if it were a fashion show, Alessandra Ambrosio could be seen recreating an indie queen with frayed shorts, suede tops, fringed jackets and a cowboy hat.
Chiara Ferragni, who in 2012 was known as “the queen of the blogosphere” thanks to her fashion blog The Blonde Salad, also walked through the tents set up in the Colorado desert with the greatest aesthetic eccentricities in her closet. Or Vanessa Hudgens, incomparable queen of the boho-chic aesthetic, changed her outfit up to three times on each of the concert days.
At that time, the festival had a clear aesthetic identity that set the dress code for attendees and gave the whole thing coherence. Without going any further, the buyer received with their ticket a starter pack with all kinds of accessories – from tattoos, feathers and glitter, to a cowboy hat – to prepare their festival style. All fashion brands wanted to be present at Coachella.
They even launched capsule collections to dress all the fans and celebrated events in the surrounding area making them coincide with those same dates. For models, celebrities and early influencers, being present at this event was a symbol of social status. Sharing on social networks that well-designed outfit in front of the most famous Ferris wheel on Instagram was the closest thing to entering Olympus, since paying for a trip to California and a ticket whose price is around $500 was intended only for a very small group of privileged.
But the explosion of the influencer phenomenon on Instagram, the arrival of TikTokers and the problems that the fashion industry has to deal with with complaints of cultural appropriation have changed the rules of the game of its iconic street style. An analysis of the outfits that were disseminated in the last edition shows that the guests have lost all the creativity that the festival demanded.
What was one of the most beloved couples by the fandom phenomenon captured all the flashes after starring in a passionate reunion between kisses, caresses and hugs. Leaving aside that possible reconciliation, both walked around the green grass of the festival with outfits that could be classified as anti-Coachella.
Camila Cabello chose cargo-style jeans and a white corset paired with sneakers. Shawn Mendes opted for simple beige pants and a white t-shirt with the Merlin Mcfly's logo. The only detail, a green bandana tied around the neck.
Sara Sampaio, one of the most iconic models of the festival, was seen with what was probably her simplest look so far: baggy jeans, a printed scarf as a top and retro-style square sunglasses. Not one more detail, just an Hermès Birkin bag that was not appropriate for the occasion (who would attend a festival with a model worth more than 10,000 euros?).
Her professional colleague, Irina Shayk, also attended the musical event with an outfit that, instead of maintaining the aesthetic coherence of the festival, mixed many trends with a strange dark touch that moved away from those warm colors of the desert.
Makeup expert and YouTuber James Charles dressed from head to toe in a total denim look signed by Diesel, with touches of color in red, the winner of this last season. A look that, in another context, could be festival-like but still didn't fit the theme.
Alessandra Ambrosio was the only celebrity who maintained that ethnic essence, although without awakening that fascination that she achieved in the past. The trends are now what mark the festival street style and not even Coachella has managed to emerge unscathed from it.
