Coachella

The honchos at Coachella have found their replacement act to fill Kanye's slot as headliner for the biggest night of the festival -- The Weeknd will join Swedish House Mafia.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us Abel has agreed to the gig, and Swedish House Mafia -- who was supposed to headline Friday night -- will now go Sunday. The pairing makes a lot of sense, the two have the hit song "Moth to a Flame" together, released just this year.

SHM and The Weeknd also both have the same management team, under SALXCO ... so both sides were already familiar.

What's more ... the performance marks SHM's big return to the desert as well as a sort of kickoff to their album "Paradise Again," which will release April 15 followed by a world tour this summer.

We're told at this time it's unclear exactly how the show will work, if one will perform before the other, or if they'll switch off throughout the set ... however, we're told given time constraints to get a show ready, Weeknd's show will likely be shorter than usual, and he's essentially a bonus to what would've already been a kickass SHM set.

TMZ broke the story -- The Weeknd, Silk Sonic and Red Hot Chili Peppers were on the organizer's short list of acts to take Kanye's spot ... Silk Sonic shut it down, as Bruno Mars didn't believe there was enough time to get a worthy show together.

However, our sources say there were some other names being considered by organizers as well, including Justin Bieber and Travis Scott. We're told Travis was unable to get a show together because of time constraints.

Of course, Travis was supposed to headline in 2020 -- but that was canceled because of COVID -- and again in 2022, but Coachella canceled his performance after the tragedy at Astroworld. Obviously, it's a good sign for TS fans wanting to see him back on mainstream festival stages if Coachella execs were willing to start talks back up with his team.

Coachella organizers are hard at work figuring out who will take Kanye's headlining Sunday spot at the festival -- and we've learned of 2 acts at the top of the list to take over.

First, who's out. We're told the organizers were hot for Silk Sonic, the dynamic duo of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak. The pair make a lot of sense, coming off a clean sweep at The Grammys, including Record of the Year for "Leave the Door Open."

We're told Bruno Mars shut it down, saying there wasn't enough time for them to get a proper show together in time for Coachella.

As for who's still in play -- there's The Weeknd, who is coming off an insane year on the charts -- a new album and an upcoming stadium tour. We're told there's been talks between both sides, which stalled at one point ... but there's still a chance he takes the stage in some capacity.

Our sources say organizers were testing the waters to see if The Weeknd would perform a few songs along with Swedish House Mafia. They were also interested in The Weeknd as a stand-alone act. Our sources say no decision has been made.

Finally, our sources say The Red Hot Chili Peppers are a name that's being seriously considered. The group is set to hit the road this summer -- and recently played a low-key show in L.A. -- so they're ready to go. What's more, our sources say RHCP makes a lot of sense, because currently there's no major rock 'n roll act on the lineup.

One thing our sources have stressed -- there are others who are being considered, but the ones we just mentioned are at the top of the list.

Kanye West has left Coachella organizers with a massive headliner hole they need to plug in less than 2 weeks ... but organizers aren't pissed -- they just want him to get better.

We've spoken with festival honchos who tell us there's not currently another artist locked in to take Ye's Sunday spot. However, our sources say there's no animosity toward Kanye ... Coachella organizers understand he's been through a lot lately, and want him to take the time to work on himself. We're told if that means having to miss the gig, so be it.

It's interesting ... Coachella producers were blindsided by Ye's withdrawal. In fact, they learned about it from us. Nevertheless, no hard feelings.

The month of March saw Kanye on a social media tear, going after Kim Kardashian, Pete Davidson and others -- eventually resulting in a suspension from Instagram for the racist attack against Trevor Noah.

In fact, just before the suspension, he teased the Coachella performance with a still image of Pete Davidson's head in the "Eazy" music video and caption, "Y'all ready for Coachella?"

Our sources say Kanye's team didn't provide a specific reason as to why he was no longer going to be headlining -- but he's obviously been suffering through personal issues.

TMZ broke the story ... Kanye backed out of Coachella, and in doing so fans will no longer see Travis Scott who was supposed to hit the stage with Kanye during his show.

While he's out of the show, Kanye hasn't gone into hiding ... he was spotted in Beverly Hills Monday glued to his phone.

It's business as usual for Kanye West -- despite dropping out of Coachella -- he's apparently still on his work grind ... stopping by a construction site in L.A.

Ye was spotted in Beverly Hills Monday, just hours after we broke the story that he was no longer going to headline the music festival. For the most part, it appears Kanye's got his head buried in his phone ... perhaps reading fan reactions to his cancelation.

What's interesting ... recent reports suggested Kanye was leaving town to get treatment and better himself after his social media outbursts. However, that just doesn't seem to be true.

Coachella organizers have not yet named Ye's replacement ... Billie Eilish, Harry Styles and Swedish House Mafia are all still scheduled to headline.

Kanye West is pressuring Billie Eilish, and holding Coachella fans hostage in the process ... threatening to pull out of the festival if she doesn't say she's sorry for an apparent jab at Travis Scott.

Ye just posted a manifesto, of sorts, demanding -- in all caps -- the 20-year-old singer "APOLOGIZE TO TRAV AND TO THE FAMILIES OF THE PEOPLE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES."

You'll recall, last week BE stopped her concert in Atlanta to make sure a fan near the front row was okay, as they were having trouble breathing. Then came the shot at Travis -- "I wait for people to be okay before I keep going."

Well, now Ye's coming to Travis' defense, saying ... "TRAV DIDN'T HAVE ANY IDEA OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING WHEN HE WAS ON STAGE AND WAS VERY HURT BY WHAT HAPPENED."

As you know, Ye and Billie are both scheduled headliners at Coachella this year -- and in his post, Ye says he plans to bring Travis with him to the festival ... that is, IF he goes now.

As he threatened, "NOW I NEED BILLIE TO APOLOGIZE BEFORE I PERFORM."

It's unclear if Ye meant Travis would be onstage performing with him, or if he'd just be there for moral support. Either way, Mr. West is now bullying Billie and, in a way, Coachella.

Billie Eilish brought her concert to a full-stop halt over one fan who appeared to be in distress -- and if you're thinking about Astroworld Fest here ... well, so was she.

The singer was performing in Atlanta Saturday, where State Farm Arena seemed to be packed to the gills with fans -- especially down below near where she was performing ... and where one gal apparently started getting crushed in the pit.

Check out this video we got of the moment BE paused everything once she became aware of what was going on ... it seems the lady in question was having trouble breathing, and needed an inhaler.

Luckily, Billie actually had one on hand ... and instructed the stage crew to get it to her ASAP. While the fan was being attended to, Billie settled down the crowd, told them to take a deep breath and step back -- at the same time, noting she wants to take care of her own ... something she's made sure to do in past concerts of hers as well, dating back years.

Then came a shot at what was clearly aimed at Travis Scott, with Billie saying ... "I wait for people to be okay before I keep going." That got huge cheers from the audience.

Of course, she's referencing the fact that Travis' November set continued for several minutes after the event was declared a mass casualty event -- with many suspecting TS was aware of what was going on. He's strongly denied that, claiming ignorance to the severity of things.

What's interesting here is the fact that Billie is replacing Travis at Coachella this year. Although an official announcement has yet to be made, the cat's outta the bag -- he got bumped amid the controversy -- other headliners dropped out too, FWIW -- and BE's one of the new artists who've been tapped in their stead.

Travis Scott's fans are pushing hard for him to headline next year's Coachella, and even have a petition going to get him on stage this year ... and they're getting a big wave of support.

Following the tragedy at Astroworld, Travis has pulled out of multiple festivals, including Coachella, and while he's opting for a break ... his fans still want him to return to live performances.

The petition that's circulating online is pushing for a Coachella make-good -- they want organizers to commit to Travis being a headliner next year ... OR guarantee Kanye West brings him out as a guest during his set this year.

After 3 days, the petition has almost 70,000 signatures.

Keep in mind, there's another petition out there ... this one started immediately after 10 people died at Astroworld in Houston, and demanded Coachella ban Travis, who, at the time, was rumored to be headlining in the desert. Right now that one has 63,000 signatures and counting.

According to the new petition, many of Trav's fans feel Coachella did him dirty -- it says, "After Coachella unfairly removed Travis Scott for Harry Styles, they need to do the right thing and rebook him immediately."

It also absolves Travis of any wrongdoing in Houston, saying ... "We all know Astroworld tragedy wasn't Travis's fault. Let him get back to performing on the biggest stages!"

As for the potential guest spot with Ye? We do know they have the Kardashian-Jenners in common, and Ye recently thanked Trav for helping him find Chicago's birthday party.

Right now it seems unlikely he'd be up for performing -- especially because he voluntarily bowed out -- but then again, the festival's not until April.

Kanye West still has Julia Fox in his corner despite tons of drama in his life ... we're told the new couple is still, well, a couple.

Our sources say Julia's been consoling Ye with everything he's been going through ... and not just the latest drama -- a criminal battery investigation after Kanye allegedly attacked and injured a man.

We're told Julia knew she'd have to help Kanye navigate his divorce from Kim Kardashian, but she may not have bargained for all the piled-on drama, including Ye's musical threat to kick Pete Davidson's ass.

Some outlets speculated Kanye and Julia were done, because we last saw her heading back into a club alone while he went on his way ... in a matter of hours, he was allegedly on the attack.

It hasn't scared Julia away ... she feels it's all part of signing up for the role as Ye's GF.

Julia has had her own drama ... she's dealing with her own split and co-parenting issues.

Kanye West is under the microscope of the LAPD for allegedly punching a fan, but that's not slowing him down professionally -- we've learned he's getting out of L.A. and shifting his focus to a new album and Coachella.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ Ye's leaving the city ASAP, heading for the SoCal desert ... where he intends to focus on nothing but work. We're told he and his creative team already scheduled meetings weeks ago with Coachella production to map out his staging, and he's sticking to that plan.

However, Coachella won't be the only project on Ye's mind -- 'Donda 2' is well underway, and Kanye will use the time outside L.A. to get with artists and producers to finish it up.

Meanwhile, back in L.A., we're told the investigation continues into allegations Kanye pushed, punched and knocked an autograph-seeking fan to the ground. Our law enforcement sources say it's still too early for cops to get in touch with Kanye and his team, but that will be coming in the near future.

TMZ broke the story, Kanye was in a rage outside Soho Warehouse early Thursday morning as his cousin tried to calm him down. A witness tells us Kanye erupted on the fan after asking not to be photographed and complaining he was going through a lot with his divorce.

Cops took a misdemeanor battery report, and witnesses claim the alleged victim hit his head pretty hard on the concrete. He left the scene under his own power, but got checked out at urgent care later on Thursday.

As for Coachella, our production sources tell us Kanye plans to do some sort of Sunday Service on both weekends of Coachella, Easter falls on Weekend 1 of the festival, and we're told there will be special guests involved outside of the Sunday Service choir.

Kanye West is filling the third and final headliner spot at this year's Coachella ... which almost certainly means Travis Scott is getting left out of the festival -- at least according to a new report.

Variety says they have sources who claim Kanye has signed on as one of the famous event's big names for 2022 ... joining the other two headliners in Billie Eilish and Swedish House Mafia.

Coachella is coming back after two years off due to the pandemic ... and the 2020 edition had Frank Ocean, Rage Against the Machine and Travis Scott as the headliners before it was scrapped.

If Kanye joins the fold, it appears highly unlikely Travis will take the stage at Coachella this April in Indio, CA ... but there's yet to be an official announcement either way.

Kanye will certainly be a big draw and he's got some new music to perform too ... remember, he recently dropped his latest album, "Donda."

Yeezy performed a few "Donda" listening parties last year ... and just last month he took the stage with Drake for the 'Free Larry Hoover' benefit concert in Los Angeles.

Billie Eilish will fill a headliner spot at this year's Coachella -- making her the second out of three names -- and a big question mark for Travis Scott's status with the festival.

A source with knowledge tells us Eilish has signed on as one of the event's big names for 2022. 2020's edition had Frank Ocean, Rage Against the Machine and Travis Scott as the three headliners before it was canceled because of COVID-19.

Frank is now committed to 2023's festival, and Rage Against the Machine is reportedly not headlining 2022's edition ... which left 2 empty spots with Travis.

The first was filled by Swedish House Mafia, who announced their return to music a couple months ago -- and now the 2nd will be Billie.

Swedish House Mafia is back in the house ... they're going out on tour for the first time in nearly a decade, and they've got a new single featuring The Weeknd!!!

The supergroup just announced plans for their first arena tour since 2012, and they just dropped their new track with Abel ... "Moth to a Flame."

Yes, Swedish House Mafia is back in a very BIG way ... the song with The Weeknd is their first new single since announcing their reunion, and it's going to be on their upcoming album, "Paradise Again."

The EDM hitmakers will kick off their rare tour next July down in Miami, the first of 44 stops around the United States and Europe.

But, before they go back on tour, SHM will make its grand return to live performing in April at Coachella -- which was already gonna be insane after the 2-year pandemic hiatus.

Coachella is making a U-turn ... ditching its plan to enforce a mandatory vaccination policy for ticketholders, and instead settling for testing negative right before the event.

The announcement came down Tuesday via an update on Coachella's official IG page -- which is run by AEG Presents -- saying, "After seeing first-hand the low transmission data and successful implementation of safety protocols at our other festivals this past month, we feel confident we can update our health policy."

The change ... allowing folks to come to Coachella (and other AEG Presents events, it seems) without having to prove they're vaxxed. Instead, you can just show a negative COVID test taken within 72 hours of the day you're attending.

This is a serious about-face from what AEG honchos said just a couple months ago -- when they announced they'd be requiring proof of vaccines, adding they felt they'd be on the right side of history, and that it was in the best interest of everyone.

The explanation is sure to thrill any anti-vaxx, or anti-mandate, folks on the fence about attending Coachella -- but something feels weird about the change of heart.

Frankly, if ya wanted to be cynical ... you could argue AEG's making a business decision -- especially in light of the massive pushback we're seeing around the country in relation to vaccine mandate.

The coronavirus vaccine isn't enough to save Coachella and Stagecoach from suffering the same fate two years in a row ... the music festivals just got put on ice ... again.

The sad news came down Friday from Riverside County Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser. He signed an order scrapping the April events, citing COVID as the culprit.

Hundreds of thousands of fans flocked to the festivals each April before the pandemic, and more would have been champing at the bit to go this year after lockdowns and the death of live music ... the doc says it's just not safe to have people coming in from all corners of a world ravaged by virus.

The move's not too surprising, considering the pandemic is far from under control ... and right now it's anyone's guess if the festivals can be revived in October. That was the plan last year, but it never panned out.

Beyonce and Peloton have teamed up on a multi-year deal that will bring a series of themed workouts paying homage to historically black colleges and universities ... and the timing couldn't be better.

Playing off "Homecoming" -- her iconic Coachella concert film -- Beyonce's helped create cycling, running, strength, boot camp, yoga and meditation classes with Peloton to commemorate the annual fall Homecoming season at HBCUs. The singer was already the most requested artist among the fitness company's 3.6 million members, so the collab makes total sense.

In addition ... Bey and Peloton are gifting 2-year digital memberships to students at 10 different HBCUs, which provide access to the fitness classes through the Peloton App that can be used with or without equipment.

Along with the big partnership coming during homecoming season, the timing's also huge for the company ... in the stock market. As you may know, Peloton use has surged during the pandemic, but its shares took a hit Monday with the announcement of the Pfizer vaccine ... dropping 20 percent.

With the Beyonce news, shares jumped as much as 7 percent early Tuesday.

As for the Queen, she says she's been a Peloton member for years and is excited to partner with a company providing an innovative way for all people to "be the best versions of themselves."

She adds ... "I'm proud to celebrate the students at HBCUs with this donation, to encourage them to find and embrace their own wellness regimens."

Coachella 2020 is officially dead on the table -- the music festival will NOT go on in October as previously planned ... with hopes to fire it back up next year.

The news came down Wednesday from Riverside County Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser. Kaiser signed an order to cancel the October event citing the fears of another rise in COVID cases in the fall. Stagecoach -- a country music festival held on the same grounds -- is also canceled.

It's still undecided if Coachella organizers will try to bring it back in April -- when it normally runs -- in a limited capacity, or just wait 'til October 2021 to open anew, and welcome everyone.

Another thing that's not totally clear is whether the 2020 lineup will remain the same, or if organizers will try booking new acts for 2021. You'll recall, this year's headliners -- which were supposed to perform later this October after the initial postponement -- included Travis Scott, Frank Ocean, Rage Against the Machine and even a late-game Gaga announcement.

A lot of those artists were already rescheduling shows for 2021, so folks probably saw this coming. Not just that, but Lollapalooza just got canceled too ... and will live stream instead.