With this year’s festival coming to a close, it’s time to reflect onCoachella 2025’s biggest moments, specifically those of a small group ofK-Popartists who, over the last five years or so, have left their mark on various stages in the Valley. Just this year, three major K-Pop acts took to the Sahara Stage each night, including JENNIE and LISA of BLACKPINK.BLACKPINK were the first K-pop girl group invited to the festival back in 2019, and the first Korean act to headline in 2023.

Over the years, plenty of talented Korean artists and groups have performed at Coachella. EPIK HIGH, a hip-hop trio, was the first Korean act to perform at the festival in 2016. 88rising, a prominent production company highlighting Asian artists worldwide, has held showcases in both 2022 and 2024, including short sets from aespa, BIBI, and CL. XG, a global girl group that promotes largely in South Korea, also performed this year. For the sake of keeping things simple, thislist focuses on acts that are undoubtedly considered K-Pop, and those who were included on the official lineup posters by name.

After staying up to watch every K-Pop artist withCoachella sets in Weekend One, I spent the past week going back in time to sets from 2019 to 2024, some of which I’d never seen before, and putting them in an order that makes sense to me. I took extensive notes during each set to take as much as I could into consideration.The aspects that matter most to me in a festival performance are stage presence, stamina, and audience engagement, each of which informed the final list below.

8JENNIE of BLACKPINK

Coachella 2025

“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” This line from Shakespeare’sAs You Like Itis what audience members and YouTube viewers heard as soon as the lights went down for JENNIE’s debut solo stage at Coachella. With the accompaniment of an incredible band and a talented group of backup dancers, BLACKPINK’s JENNIE brought the crowd into “The Ruby Experience.”

To be blunt, I was disappointed by this set.I was looking forward to it after being obsessed with her debut solo album,Ruby, but she didn’t bring the energy I believe the album deserved.The introduction, certain transitions between songs, and remixes were pulled directly from her Ruby Experience shows, making it less special for the monumental debut most artists bring to their Coachella sets. There were some songs where I felt her performance was stronger than others, like “ZEN” and “F.T.S.,” but for the most part, her energy fell flat.

It’s typical for a Coachella set, especially from a K-Pop artist, to improve greatly in its second weekend. Unfortunately, this lack of energy is something that fans and others alike havenoticed in her solo shows and even in recent BLACKPINK performances. While I strongly believe that JENNIE is a necessary member of BLACKPINK and a great solo artist, I just didn’t feel connected to this performance until the very end, when she finally seemed comfortable during “Starlight.”

7LE SSERAFIM

Coachella 2024

As soon as LE SSERAFIM was announced in the lineup for Coachella in 2024, speculation grew about their preparedness. Compared to their HYBE peers ENHYPEN and TXT,the girl group had yet to embark on a world tour, something that felt like a more natural next step than booking a slot for one of the most prominent music festivals in the world. The five-member group is widely known for their dancing abilities and their extravagant performances at South Korean award shows, but their live vocals have always been met with criticism.

After being present (virtually) for the immediate hate LE SSERAFIM received last year, I felt like their set wasn’t as bad as I remembered. My main gripe is with the order of the setlist. Starting with “ANTIFRAGILE,” a song many regard as their best, risks peaking too early while also engaging with a very high-energy choreography. By the time they got to the end of their 40-minute set,the exhaustion and vocal strain was painfully evident in every member, except maybe Yunjin, something they could’ve easily avoided during rehearsals.

Any improvement during their second weekend was overshadowed by the lack of preparedness they went into the first weekend with.

If they’d started with “EASY,” a song that would’ve blended much better with the set’s introduction, they could’ve held back on the choreography, making it more engaging as it went on,rather than putting all their energy into the first few songs. Any improvement during their second weekend was overshadowed by the lack of preparedness they went into the first weekend with.

6BLACKPINK

Coachella 2019

One week after theirKILL THIS LOVEEP was released, and before they went on their world tour, BLACKPINK rocked the Sahara Stage at Coachella in 2019. Their excitement was palpable in how much energy they brought, with every member staying on the same level from start to finish.As a group, BLACKPINK are an impressive force in the K-Pop industry,making it a no-brainer that they should be the first of many K-Pop girl groups to perform at the festival.

ROSÉ was an immediate standout for me. Her bright energy made for great interactions with the crowd and incredibly stable vocals throughout. JENNIE was the only one to get a solo stage in 2019, but her performance was much more on par with what I’d expect from one of the group’s main dancers than her 2025 set.Their discography feels like it was created to be performed at music festivals, with explosive choruses and catchy lyrics that make you want to jump up and down. Overall, I enjoyed this performance and was excited to watch their headlining set.

5ENHYPEN

In my opinion, ENHYPEN has one of the best discographiesin K-Pop’s fourth generation, as well as some of the genre’s most impressive performers. Last weekend, they brought the energy right away to the Sahara Stage with “Blockbuster,” a 2021 B-side that I was so excited to hear them open with.They’re a group that has an exhausting amount of touring experience under their belt, something that makes a 40-minute set like this light work for them.Like BLACKPINK, ENHYPEN kept every member’s energy on the same level, with a few inevitably standing out anyway.

Heeseung never disappoints with his live vocals, Jay fits into their more rock-leaning tracks with ease, and Ni-ki was a surprising highlight of their set for me. It’s no surprise that he’s the group’s main dancer, but he delivered choreography, vocals, raps, and energy without a single hitch. I loved their Coachella version of “XO (Only If You Say Yes),” and making “Brought The Heat Back” the final song made my one prediction come true.If I had to make one critique, it’s that I would’ve liked more crowd engagement and individual interactions.

4BLACKPINK

Coachella 2023

When BLACKPINK returned to the Valley to become the first Korean headliner of Coachella, they brought out all the stops. The move from the Sahara Stage to the Main Stage meant room for more dancers, the use of additional stages, including a catwalk, and an even bigger crowd, all things the group adapted to with ease.I noticed an immediate step up from their 2019 set in the introduction and opening number alone.They jumped right into the hits and filled their headlining set with even more energy than the last.

I can’t help but feel like BLACKPINK more than earned their place on the Main Stage in 2023.

This time around, every member gota solo stage, each complete with their own outfit changes and an atmosphere that fits each track. LISA and ROSÉ’s stages stood out to me the most, almost feeling like their own concerts, but I thoroughly enjoyed all of them. Their vocals were stable during rap verses and vocal deliveries, once again highlighting each member’s talents without leaving anyone behind. The performance from 2019 definitely made for a more intimate feel between audience and artist,but I can’t help but feel like BLACKPINK more than earned their place on the Main Stage in 2023.

3LISA of BLACKPINK

As someone who wouldn’t consider herself a BLACKPINK fan just last year, I sure can’t stop thinking about LISA’s debut solo set. Her gravity-defying entrance alone, accompanied by the lyrics “Make way, make way, make way / Takin' space up in the sky” gave me goosebumps.It’s an entrance worthy of pop royalty, not to mention a global superstar.At first, I thought the futuristic/dystopian theme of the first few songs was what the whole performance would look like. When I realized what she was doing after that first set, everything clicked.

When LISA’s debut albumAlter Egodropped, I quickly brushed it aside because of how discombobulated it felt. Sonically, the alter ego concept isn’t successful within one album. However, when you use those alter egos and the songs that align with them as separate sections of your debut Coachella stage as a soloist, you make yourself known as a force to be reckoned with.LISA molded herself into each character so seamlessly that I couldn’t help but be hypnotized by her stage presence.Maybe I was wrong, or maybe I just fell a little bit in love with LISA.

2Jackson Wang

Something tells me that several people reading this right now are wondering what kind of crazy person made this list. Unfortunately, I seem to be one of the only people who have watched Jackson Wang’s Coachella set in its entirety because it feels incredibly underrated after just two years. I’m not a huge GOT7 fan beyond having some of their music saved and enjoying their recent album, but I love the singles off Wang’s solo albumMagic Man.With his Coachella stage from 2023, he took that album and turned it into a high-scale theatrical production.

Complete withfantastic styling, actual magic tricks, and some of the most talented dancers I’ve ever seen, Wang managed to be fully in character while also interacting with the audience and thoroughly enjoying himself. During the first weekend, he brought out Ciara and let her perform her own miniature set within his set, showing his appreciation for her as an artist and allowing her to feel the audience’s energy. Wang is, as far as I know, an extremely underrated dancer and one of the coolest soloists to come from the K-Pop industry.

1ATEEZ

There’s a reason why ATEEZ is known as a performance powerhouse. Their electric set at Coachella 2024 isa performance that continues to stand as an example of the kind of expert execution that K-Pop acts, when timed just right, can bring to the stage.The eight-member boy group has been on an upward trajectory since their 2023 full-length albumTHE WORLD EP. FIN: WILLdebuted at number one on the USBillboard200, so a Coachella invitation was the cherry on top of an already towering cake.

They brought the energy straight away, with “Say My Name,” a song that brought them attention for its iconic chorus choreography. Every member would have their own moment to shine both weekends, includingJongho’s impeccable vocal delivery during “WONDERLAND,“where he perfectly hit his signature high note after 40 minutes of high-energy choreography. The new arrangements of songs like “Crazy Form” and “Guerrilla” were elevated by their live band, whom they spotlighted during “ARRIBA,” one of their most enjoyable performances of the night.

“I think the first time we came to LA was about six years ago. We were practicing like crazy in a tiny little studio to get a chance to debut. They say to dream big, but I don’t think I have ever imagined being here at Coachella.”

- Hongjoong

Hongjoong’s brief speech to the crowd each weekend perfectly captured what it meant for them to perform on a stage that doesn’t often see K-Pop acts that start out as underdogs.If you didn’t believe his words, surelySeonghwa’s spur-of-the-moment victory yell at the end of “WONDERLAND"during the second weekend made you realize how much one invitation meant to them.