Sabrina Carpenter promises “most ambitious show” yet for Coachella 2026

Sabrina Carpenter has teased what to expect from her headline sets at Coachella 2026, saying fans will see her “most ambitious show” yet.

The pop star will top the bill at this year’s festival in Indio, California, alongside Justin Bieber and Karol G. She’ll take to the main stage this Friday (April 10) for weekend one, before returning on April 17 for the second leg.

Carpenter previously performed on the Coachella main stage in 2024, when she told the crowd: “See you back here when I headline.”

During a new interview with Perfect, the ‘Man’s Best Friend’ singer was asked about how preparations were going for her two headline slots at the festival this month.

“It’s the most ambitious show I’ve ever done,” she replied. “It’s probably the most time I’ve ever had to actually just sit down and talk about a show as I’m building it.”

Carpenter continued: “Most of the time, you’re really quickly thrust into physical rehearsals, but this time around we started this process around seven months ago. So it’s been a long journey.”

She concluded by promising that her debut Coachella headline sets would be “very special”. The star then looked back on performing at the event in 2024, “but not as a headliner”.

“I was playing sunset, around 5.30 pm on the main stage two years ago,” Carpenter recalled. “That was a really special day for me, the day my song ‘Espresso’ came out. I got to play that for the first time at Coachella.

“And now, two years later, we’re back. And I think that’s what makes this show feel really, really surreal: getting to celebrate all the songs that have come after it, and just how many lives they’ve lived since they’ve come out.”

You can check out the set times for Coachella weekend one here, along with details on how to watch the festival online.

In other news, Jack White has been confirmed for Coachella 2026 weekend one as a last-minute addition, while Lambrini Girls appear to have been dropped from the line-up. Elsewhere, headliner Karol G has said that she has been warned not to say “ICE out”, as doing so could lead to her losing her visa.

Other acts on the bill at Coachella this year include The xx, The Strokes, Nine Inch Noize (Nine Inch Nails and Boys Noize), Disclosure, Turnstile, Geese, Ethel Cain, KATSEYE, Addison Rae, Labrinth, David Byrne, Interpol, Alex G, BIGBANG, Laufey, Iggy Pop, FKA Twigs and Wet Leg.

NME last caught Carpenter live when she headlined BST Hyde Park in London last summer. The glowing five-star review read: “[‘Espresso has] catapulted the singer from an artist orbiting the pop girl league tables to one of its reigning champs, but her command of this space is a testament to the years of graft it took to get there. All she needed was time.”

Sabrina Carpenter performed ‘Manchild’ live at the Grammys in February. She was nominated for six awards at this year’s ceremony, but did not take home any prizes on the night.