Coachella 2023: Juliet Mendoza shares what its like to be one of the opening acts

For musicians, getting a slot on the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival lineup is considered a pretty big career milestone. It’s certainly a landmark moment for Los Angeles-based producer and DJ Juliet Mendoza.

“In our Latin culture, they always tell you when things are meant for you, it will just come,” Mendoza said after being one of the very first artists to perform on the opening day of the three-day Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio on Friday, April 14, just after noon in the Yuma Tent. She’ll be back for the second weekend of the festival, April 21-23, too.

“From our Latin families, we learn a lot about integrity and morals, so I always do everything with that in mind, and Coachella just happened naturally,” she continued. “I never thought I would be in the position I am in. I would have never thought I would be in this environment, or in this space, or even representing Latin women like this. It’s been a very hard journey, It’s not easy, but it led to here.”

Though some fans traveled from far away places to see Coachella’s top-tier acts, artists like Mendoza are put in the unique position to kick things off and set the mood for the day. In the Yuma Tent, where in previous years artists like Peggy Gou, Annie Mac, Duke Dumont, Jamie XX and others have graced the stage, Mendoza served up a nostalgic ’90s Latin house and disco set, spinning tracks like “Let The Music Play” by Shannon and a remix of “Poison” by Bell Biv DeVoe. A few dozen festival-goers were in the tent enjoying the air-conditioned dance floor and tunes as disco balls created a fun lighting effect above.