Mother monster is here.
Lady Gaga took the main stage for an epic nearly two-hour performance at Coachella 2025 Friday night, wowing fans with an operatic mash-up of her biggest hits, like “Paparazzi,” “Poker Face” and “Bad Romance” as well as songs from her newest album, “Mayhem.”
Like the contrast between her enduring decades-old records and fresh beats, the electrifying spectacle was structured around the dichotomy between old and new — with Gaga herself transitioning literally between the dark character Mistress of “Mayhem” and a more angelic figure multiple times throughout the three acts.
After a pre-taped monologue that saw the two characters engaging in a dialogue, the superstar first appeared on stage serving as the Mistress, wearing her hair in a short chin-length jet-black bob with bangs.
Gaga, 39, made her grand entrance in a larger-than-life multi-storied red gown that hid several dancers under the ruffled skirt and featured horn-like embellishments around her collar and wrists.
The Grammy winner had several outfit changes during the magnum opus performance — and at many moments she made reference to her past music videos and most well-known outfits, like the white- and red-lace face-obscuring bodysuits and crown that she wore during her “The Fame” era.
There was a bondage-inspired Dolce & Gabbana buckle jacket, Captain Hook-style jacket and a mirrored catsuit throughout the fashionable parade.
While performing “Poker Face” on an innovative set designed to look like a chess board, Gaga — clad in a black veil and black lace bodysuit — physically fought off her doppelgänger in an awe-inspiring dance number.
Her stage design and choreography, created in collaboration with Parris Goebel, who worked on the “Disease” and “Abracadabra” music videos, resembled an antique theater straight out of a twisted “Phantom of the Opera” set with jaw-dropping pageantry.
In contrast to the chaos-causing counterpart, the “A Star is Born” actress traded her all-black and red looks for a romantic, shredded white look and long blond, braided wig for Act Two to perform “Perfect Celebrity,” “Alejandro” and more — including “Paparazzi,” during which she donned similar silver crutches and arm braces from the 2009 music video.
Back in “Mayhem” mode for a heart-warming rendition of “Vanish Into You” in which she interacted with her dedicated fans while wearing a futuristic gray blazer and black patent leather boy shorts, she returned to the stage for an encore as classic Gaga.
Returning to her blond wig, Mother Monster was raised from the dead in another throwback look: an intricately crafted white feather bodysuit with exaggerated hip features and a collar — plus gloves with versions of fingers that reached past her knees.
She teased the Easter egg-filled performance in an interview with Out magazine ahead of Friday night. “‘Mayhem’ is, to me, a lot of Gothic dreams. I’ve realized that’s been a part of my music since early in my career. So I’m just really thinking about the lighting, the feeling, the energy, and what I want to help people feel that night,” she said.
This is the second time that Gaga has headlined the California music festival; she previously filled in as a last-minute replacement for Beyoncé in 2017 when the “Cowboy Carter” singer dropped out after revealing she was pregnant with twins.
Due to her limited timeframe to pull the performance together, Gaga wasn’t able to fully realize a complex scene for the stage set-up or wardrobe — she was given just two weeks notice.
“I have long dreamed of throwing a massive night of chaos in the desert,” Gaga wrote on Instagram when she was announced as a 2025 headliner.
“I’ve had a vision I’ve never been able to fully realize at Coachella for reasons beyond our control but I wanted to come through for music fans,” she added. “I have been wanting to go back and to do it right, and I am.”
