How to deal with Coachella FOMO
The presence of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is almost inescapable. Whether it’s scrolling through Twitter to catch up on memes or hopping on Instagram to post a story, you’re bound to see some Coachella content from your mutuals. Whether it’s Fred Again..’s set or Doja Cat talking about Taco Bell, there’s endless content to pop up onto your feed.
Coachella is one of the largest music festivals in the United States, so it’s a no-brainer as to why you’re seeing it everywhere on social media. Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times said that Coachella has so much cultural importance that what happens at Coachella tends not to stay there. Trends in music, fashion and performing might be birthed over these weekends in the Coachella Valley. So whether you like it or not, it can be incredibly hard to avoid seeing the festival online since some aspects of Coachella bleed into the overarching cultural sphere.
So naturally, you’ll feel FOMO, because who likes seeing other people enjoy unprecedented moments such as 2NE1’s reunion? Of course it sucks to see your peers enjoying themselves while you’re in Leavey preparing for your final exams, but that doesn’t have to be the case.
If you’re not at Coachella, there’s probably a good reason why — the $449+ ticket (along with all other costs) is too expensive, you have too much schoolwork to catch up on, or your coworkers wouldn’t cover your Friday shift. All these problems detail priorities that trump the festival. Being cognizant of this can help you realize that you’re actually making smart financial decisions and that there’s nothing to feel left out about. After all, the outrageous ticket price is just a commodity for those that are privileged enough to afford it.
Those that do purchase Coachella tickets are contributing to wealthy companies that do little to acknowledge the farmworkers and neighboring communities that run the city throughout the rest of the year. Goldenvoice, the company that runs the festivals, makes hundreds of millions of dollars while over a third of the population of the Eastern Coachella Valley lives in poverty. Polo’s Pantry’s — a mobile food pantry — Instagram post details the reality of the Coachella Valley farmworkers, as well as organizations that they urge festival goers to support marginalized communities.
Along with unaffordable festival tickets, the festival had little to no mandates on masking, vaccinations or coronavirus testing. Some of the artists playing the festival have expressed their concerns about touring and live music. Though the festival is outside, there still is a risk of catching and spreading the virus in tightly packed crowds under tents and other areas where large scale gatherings occur.
So, curb your Coachella FOMO by choosing to support underserved communities as well as smaller musicians and live shows. You can still experience live music for under $20 at a plethora of venues across L.A., such as the Moroccan Lounge or smaller shows thrown by fellow Trojans. 29th St. Productions, Cup of Troy and EngageSC host various live music and social events, where you can feed your yearning for festival-like experiences.
As humans, we will still instinctively search for ways to avoid the pain of missing out, so the easiest way to avoid FOMO is to simply avoid consuming Coachella content entirely. Of course, that’s easier said than done, so an effective way to do this is to temporarily block people and artists where you might see the content — or just get off social media entirely and take a mindful detox.
Nonetheless, all of this isn’t to say that buying 2023 Coachella tickets to see Frank Ocean is a bad idea. Part of going to the festival is about acknowledging the privilege it requires to be able to purchase tickets, and how to utilize this privilege in a way that works against wealthy companies and assists underserved communities.
Remember that it’s natural to feel FOMO and that there are ways to curb it — or maybe you’ll realize that you actually aren’t missing out on much.