Apolitical romantasy and the Ozempic factor

Hi everyone, I hope you had a good 4/20. There are probably some takes circulating about the state of weed consumption and culture, but I suggest you read the American Style stoner girl report published last month and written by real girls who love smoking weed.

I’ve never been to Coachella, but last year I launched an aggressive 6 woman boots-on-the-ground reporting campaign to cover the festival. I thought the reporting was so good and tuned-in that there might not be much more to say this year (This is the gotcha! of how trend reporting works, if you have an attuned eye a trend you spot will filter down to the conversation radar months or years after you brought it up).

Turns out I was wrong. As I said in the 2025 Coachella trend report, culture didn’t stop moving just because it’s dead. That feels truer than ever with the big big excitement for Justin Bieber’s headlining set and acts like Addison Rae who are determined to, in her own words, go down in history. And when I took a poll on IG on if I should cover Coachella this year, the resounding answer was yesdoit. Ok!

Andrea, a veteran music journalist returning for her 12th (or 20th, if you count both weekends) Coachella. Andrea covered Coachella for American Style last year and can pull an impressive thesis from a field of drunk girls in boots.

Here’s what Andrea had to say about why she went to Coachella this year:

This is my culture criticism Super Bowl. I love coming every year to assess the zeitgeist, where it’s heading, and what it tells us about ourselves and relationships to each other. And to see some great live music and maybe even discover a few acts. This year I’m covering for the Los Angeles Times, my podcast [The Culture Journalist], and, of course, American Style!!

Madeline, a 22-year-old editorial assistant at Nina Protocol, a music platform that I don’t fully understand but reminds me of old iPod commercials, which I think is the point. Madeline was not able to get a press pass, but still had plans to be in Palm Springs.

And here’s what she had to say about it:

I didn’t get approved for a press pass, and I also didn’t want to pony up for a wristband. I’m here to be good-for-nothing and burn that YouTube livestream into my retinas from the comfort of a Togo sofa. I told Biz I’d cover Coachella in a bout of optimism, during which I almost drove to Newport Beach to buy GA from a statuesque blonde woman who played collegiate volleyball in Orange County. Someone beat me there.

I loved the idea of reporting on the festival without actually getting in combined with Andrea’s decade-plus experience attending and covering Coachella.

So, here’s the 2026 American Style Coachella trend report, including the biggest trends of the weekend, fairyvibes, what normies wore, the Ozempic factor, updates in boho amnesia, and more.