Frank Ocean Gave Up $4 Million by Backing Out of His Second Coachella Performance (2024)

Frank Ocean was set to make an $8 million paycheck for his headliner performances at Coachella this year, but his last-minute cancellation has meant a lot of financial changes for the Indio-based music festival. Ocean will now only be paid $4 million since he’s only doing one of two performances—but his cancellation could still end up costing the festival money overall.

Billboard reported that Ocean’s Coachella paycheck was set at $4 million for each performance: their report explains, however, that Blink-182 charges the same headlining fee and had to be paid that $4 million to take over Ocean’s slot. The festival also has to pay Skrillex, Four Tet, and Fred again for their closing set. The report further explains that festival promoter Goldenvoice created the most expensive part of Ocean’s production—an ice rink that they were ultimately unable to use due to the artist’s last-minute injury—to the tune of another $4 million. They also had to pay $45,000 in curfew fees when the show went past midnight, having started over an hour late.

Ocean canceled his second set of Coachella performances for this year after a chaotic first weekend show that faced a handful of technical issues and unexpected guest stars and had production scrambling behind the scenes with last-minute changes. Ocean’s representation has since stated that those last-minute changes were due to an injury the artist sustained shortly before that first show—the same leg injury that will prevent him from performing at the festival’s second weekend.

A statement from Ocean’s representative Anna Meacham was shared with the New York Times and other outlets explaining that Ocean had suffered a leg injury a few days before his first Coachella performance.

“Frank Ocean was unable to perform the intended show but was still intent on performing, and in 72 hours, the show was reworked out of necessity,” Meacham said in her statement. “On doctor’s advice, Frank Ocean is not able to perform weekend two due to two fractures and a sprain in his left leg.”

Given Ocean’s confusing and unorthodox first weekend performance, fans initially assumed he simply wasn’t up to performing a second time. But his having sustained an injury gives a much clearer picture of what was happening before that first show and why he had to walk away before the second weekend.