Coachella slapped with fine due to Justin Bieber

Coachella 2026 took place across two weekends—April 10–12 and 17–19—featuring headliners Sabrina Carpenter, Karol G, and Justin Bieber.

Keep reading to learn what happened at the event.

While the first weekend ran without major issues, the second weekend saw organizers hit with curfew fines after Bieber’s performance went over the allotted time, triggering penalties set by the city of Indio.

Paul Tollett and Rick Van Santen founded Coachella in 1999. The event is held annually at the Empire Polo Club in Indio and organized by Goldenvoice, a subsidiary of AEG Worldwide.

Under Goldenvoice’s agreement with Indio, performances must end by 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, and by midnight on Sunday. Violating the curfew results in a $20,000 fine for the first five minutes, plus $1,000 for each additional minute.

Italian-American musician Matteo Milleri, who is also known as Anyma and one half of Tale of Us, performed on Friday, April 17, after his first weekend set was canceled due to severe weather. His show ran nine minutes past curfew, costing organizers $24,000.

The following night, the singer exceeded the limit by two minutes during his headlining set, which included a surprise appearance by Billie Eilish. That brought the total fines for the second weekend to $20,000 more.

A city representative confirmed the figures to TMZ.

Revenue from these penalties goes into Indio’s General Fund, supporting services like public works, police, and fire departments.

Curfew fines are nothing new for Coachella. The current agreement, signed in 2013 and running through 2050, replaced an earlier flat-rate system of $1,000 per minute.

Back in 2009, Paul McCartney exceeded the limit by 54 minutes, resulting in $54,000 in fines. That same year, The Killers also went 30 minutes over.

During The Cure’s set, organizers were even forced to cut the performance short after the band began a new song around 12:30 a.m.

“The music is supposed to end every night at midnight,” Commander Ben Guitron from Indio police said at the time, according to NBC Washington. “How Goldenvoice addresses our concerns is up to them.”

He added that police did not physically intervene to stop the show.

Beyond the fines, Bieber’s 2026 performance also drew attention for a personal moment involving Billie Eilish.

While performing his 2009 hit “One Less Lonely Girl,” he invited Eilish onstage, a callback to his early tours. She appeared emotional, sitting in a chair, smiling and holding her head as he sang, before the two shared a hug.

Afterward, she posted a photo on Instagram with teary eyes and the caption, “Can’t stop crying.”

Her mother, Maggie Baird, later revealed that Hailey Bieber had encouraged her to go onstage.

“One of the most touching moments ever,” Baird wrote. “Watching this crazy, unimaginable dream come true over many years is so incredible.”

She also thanked Justin and Hailey for their kindness. Eilish has long been open about being a fan of Bieber, even having posters of him in her childhood bedroom. Their first public meeting at Coachella 2019 went viral when they embraced during Ariana Grande’s set.

“Long and bright future ahead of you,” Bieber later wrote about her on Instagram.