Justin Bieber approached his Coachella set the same the way he began his career: With help from YouTube.
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The pop star burst onto the scene in the early 2000s, after music producer Scooter Braun stumbled on the Canadian teen’s amateur online videos and turned him into a musical icon.
When taking the stage on Saturday at the festival in Indio, Calif., Bieber, now 32, paid homage to his roots and took his fans down memory lane.
Instead of a flashy, choreographed performance with costume changes, bright lights and backup dancers — which are commonplace on Coachella stages — Bieber brought just one prop to aid his set: a laptop with internet connection.
The artist projected YouTube’s homepage and pulled up some of his own classic hits, including “Baby.” He even played his viral 2008 cover of “With You” that kicked off his singing career. Thousands of fans who braved the desert heat to see Bieber live sang along in the crowd, as millions online tuned in to a live stream of the performance on YouTube.
For many fans, the show was more an oral history of Bieber’s successes and failures, rather than a traditional Coachella performance.
“This show felt like it was made for the real OG beliebers,” a Bieber fan account wrote in the comments section of one clip posted by Coachella. Another user in the comments described the performance as “simple and legendary.”
But the lack of verve Bieber brought to one of music’s biggest stages also drew some backlash online — especially amid reports that the artist was paid $10 million to host a YouTube viewing party.
Representatives for Coachella did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
The discourse online started off as jest.
“Thank god he has premium,” pop star Katy Perry said in a video she posted of herself on Instagram during Bieber’s set. “I don’t want to see no ads.”
It was one of several social media posts from the “Teenage Dream” singer, who was at the festival with her beau, former Canadian Prime minister Justin Trudeau.
Swedish popstar Zara Larsson also joined in on the online commentary, posting a video of herself watching the livestream of Bieber’s set.
“It’s giving let’s smoke and watch YouTube,” Larsson wrote in text over the video. The caption said, “He’s in my dream blunt rotation.”
Many were quick to assume Larsson was criticizing Bieber, but she followed up with an Instagram comment defending his performance.
“People thinking I’m hating are projecting lol I was vibing hardddddddddddddd,” Larsson wrote.
But others online were less enthusiastic.
One X user posted a screen shot of the Coachella stream that showed Bieber sitting at a desk with his open MacBook in front of him, YouTube page blasted on the massive screen behind him.
“Nothing from my end thanks,” the user wrote in the post, likening Bieber’s setup to a corporate Zoom call.
Some online slammed Bieber for being lazy and for “scamming” the famed festival out of millions as he sat at his computer.
One person compared Bieber to fellow festival headliner Sabrina Carpenter, who is known for her larger than life performances.
“If Sabrina Carpenter did what Justin Bieber is doing right now, her career would be over,” the X user wrote.
But “Beliebers,” the label Bieber fans are known as, were quick to offer a competing narrative.
Influencer Remi Bader, who was also in the crowd for Bieber’s Coachella set on Saturday, posted photos of actor Jacob Elordi and artist Sombr seemingly enjoying the performance.
Bader also posted a separate photo of the stage and said the set was “pure bliss.”
Coachella continues next weekend, with Bieber expected to helm the main stage again on Saturday night. It remains to be seen whether he will fire up his laptop for the second time, or if he will take another, perhaps more artistic route.
Either way, one thing remains clear: Bieber’s fans will “Never Say Never” to his performances.
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