Coachella 2019: Beyonce Fans Upset Ariana Grande Got Paid So Much More

Beyonce fans are furious with Ariana Grande after learning that the “Thank U, Next” singer was paid more for headlining Coachella 2019 than Beyonce was the year before. Grande was paid a reported $8 million, according to Variety, which is significantly more than Beyonce received. The Bey Hive took to Twitter to express their dissatisfaction, accusing Grande’s fans of being disrespectful and discrediting Beyonce’s work.

Variety reports that Grande, the youngest headliner in Coachella’s 20-year history, was paid double what Beyonce received in 2018. Her performance featured a live orchestra, appearances from *NSYNC, a duet with Nicki Minaj, and a tribute to ex-boyfriend Mac Miller, who died in September 2018. Grande, 25, hasn’t commented on the controversy, but her production designer touched on it in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. He said in the interview that Beyonce “set the bar” with her 2018 Coachella performance, noting that it’s the fans who make it “a competition.”

“Because Beyonce came in last year and did her thing and kind of set the bar, basically Coachella becomes a competition, which is ridiculous,” Bennett told The Hollywood Reporter. “And artists who are strong should just come in and do their own thing and just be who they are. And that’s pretty much what Ariana has done. There’s not like there’s a bunch of gags. She’s being Ariana and singing and doing her thing.”

For fans, Grande’s performance was a fraction of Beyonce’s. The “Sorry” singer, who became the first Black woman to headline Coachella, designed every aspect of the performance from the stage, to the set list, to the costumes, and the routine. The performance, as well as all the behind-the-scenes aspects, were documented in a Netflix film titled Homecoming. In spite of all this, Money reported that Beyonce was paid between $3 and $4 million dollars for headlining Coachella, and fans feel it’s unfair.

“[To] see how much work, time and thought has been put into [Beyonce’s] set and her being paid 2-3 times less than ariana who basically did her concert show makes me sick,” one Twitter user said.

“Her work ethic and level of quality are unsurpassed, how can you not love Beyonce? I resisted for years, but you can’t deny her. I hope she timed this release to flex on Ariana Grande, who reportedly got paid more for her Coachella performance #boo,” another Beyonce fan tweeted.

The contention toward Grande carried over into real life, too. During her final performance during the second weekend at Coachella, the singer was pelted with a lemon — seemingly a nod to Beyonce’s Lemonade album — by an audience member, according to Entertainment Tonight. The fruit hit Grande in the chest and bounced off, according to the outlet. She called out her attacker and continued with her performance.

“That’s ’cause one of y’all threw a lemon at me,” she said.

Although Beyonce wasn’t paid as much as Grande for her Coachella performance, the INSIDER notes that she surely received a significant payout from Netflix for the documentary which means she was paid more than Grande after all was said and done. In a separate report Variety alleges that Beyonce’s deal with the streaming service was worth $60 million. She was paid $20 million for Homecoming, which is just one in a series of film projects to come from Beyonce and Netflix. Two more films are expected to follow, according to Variety.