The rapper’s first performance was widely criticized by fans and the specialized press.
“Messy, disjointed and almost disastrous.” The first concert of American artist Frank Ocean at the Coachella festival in California on Sunday evening was widely criticized. He will not have the opportunity to make up for it, as the rapper canceled his other concert scheduled for the second weekend of the festival, citing a leg injury, his agent announced on Wednesday April 19.
“After injuring his leg at the festival site in the week leading up to the first weekend…Frank Ocean was unable to perform the scheduled concert, but he still intended to do so, and within 72 hours, the concert was reorganized out of necessity”, said his agent. The singer suffers “two fractures and a sprain in the left leg”he specified, and preferred to cancel “on the advice of a physician”.
“That’s not what I intended to show”
Highly anticipated, his concert, the first since 2017, began on Sunday April 16, an hour late. In particular, he turned his back on the crowd to interpret his title Novacane and took extended breaks between some songs. The scenography, redesigned at the last moment, also caused confusion among the spectators. According to the website of RollingStone (in English), dozens of professional skaters were on the ice during the show. A portion of ice having given way, the entire scenography would then have fallen into the water. Fans were also disappointed by the abrupt ending to the concert, which unlike the others was not available on livestream.
After his huge delay, the singer invoked the “curfew” imposed by the festival on Sunday to end his show with a few laconic words.
“It was chaotic. There is a certain beauty in chaos.”
Frank Ocean, artistaccording to a press release from his representative
“Not what I intended to show, but I enjoyed being there and will see you again soon”added the singer.
Justin Bieber loved the show
Despite the mess, one pop star particularly enjoyed the show. Justin Bieber posted a photo of Frank Ocean on Instagram on Tuesday with the following message: “I was blown away by Frank Ocean’s performance at Coachella. I was deeply moved. It made me want to continue and improve as an artist. He continues to set the bar very high and gave me an evening that I will never forget. Thanks Frank!“
According to the magazine variety, Blink-182 could replace the singer as the headliner for the closing of the Californian festival next weekend. Information, for the moment, not confirmed by the organization.