• There's much speculation about what Coachella headliners Ariana Grande and Beyoncé were paid for headlining two weekends of the festival in 2019 and 2018, respectively.
  • Variety reported Grande was paid $8 million, while older reports stated that Beyoncé would earn about $4 million. However, Billboard reported yesterday that Bey was paid between $8 million and $12 million.
  • Sources also told The Blast that both Grande and Beyoncé were paid $4 million for each of their two headlining weekends.

Ariana Grande and Beyoncé fans were sent into a frenzy after reports claimed that Grande was paid double what her predecessor earned for performing a headlining set at Coachella. However, that's probably not the case. Let's break it down.

2019 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival - Weekend 1 - Day 3
Kevin Mazur//Getty Images

Variety recently reported that Grande was paid $8 million for her two-weekend headlining gig this year. People thought she earned twice as much as Beyoncé because older reports, like one from The New Yorker, stated that Bey and her fellow headliners would make "between three and four million dollars" for the same gig.

However, a more recent report from Billboard (published yesterday) says Beyoncé was actually paid $8 million to $12 million for headlining the two-weekend festival in 2018, giving the Beyhive some peace of mind. (Exact finances for Coachella have not been released, but BAZAAR.com has reached out to Goldenvoice, the company that runs the festival, for comment.)

People also reports, citing The Blast, that actually both artists were paid $8 million for their respective headlining shows: $4 million for the first weekend and the other $4 million for the second.

2018 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival - Weekend 1 - Day 2
Larry Busacca//Getty Images

Regardless of the numbers, both Ari and Bey made history with their Coachella sets. Beyoncé was the first black woman to ever headline the festival, while Grande is the event's youngest headliner. Together, they make up half the list of women who have ever headlined the 20-year musical extravaganza. The first was Bjork in 2007, then came Lady Gaga in 2017.

Grande, who brought special guests Diddy, Nicki Minaj, and NSYNC onstage for her Coachella performance last weekend, is returning this Sunday for her second headlining set.

Fans can also relive the magic of Beyoncé's 2018 Coachella performance through her new Netflix documentary, Homecoming, and accompanying live album, which were both just released this week.

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Erica Gonzales

Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There is a 75 percent chance she's listening to Lorde right now.