It’s estimated that over 75,000 people will go to Indio, California’s Stagecoach Festival when it returns to Empire Polo Club from April 24 to 26, 2026.
Cody Johnson, Post Malone and Lainey Wilson will headline. Other acts like Gavin Adcock, Ella Langley, BigXthaPlug, Pitbull, Bush and Journey, plus dozens more, will play on multiple stages spread over the 1,000-acre property in Southern California’s Coachella Valley.
Malone will return after making a splashy country “debut” with a guest-laden set of country covers in 2024.
As has been the case for two decades, a multi-genre cultural blend focused on sing-along fun, driven by multi-platinum hits magnified through country music’s century of traditions, will be highlighted.
Big Loud-signed West Virginia native and Americana-roots performer Charles Wesley Godwin is also among them.
When the bearded, coffee-loving artist performs his streaming hits like “Family Ties” and “Cue Country Roads” live at Stagecoach in front of tens of thousands of fans, it could be the start to the next chapter of his career. The stakes are high.
“It’s exciting to look out there and see that so many people are supporting what we’re doing,” Godwin said. He typically sweats through a bandana tied into a headband halfway through his set.
A band, The Allegheny High, backs Godwin. They infuse his passionate emotion with an equally hard and heavy musicality.
Country acts emerge from humble roots, achieve unexpected dreams
“I’ve been gone so long away from my home / Most outsiders with a gumption to roam / I used to live high beneath the mountain sky / If you asked me how I left, I couldn’t tell you why,” he sings on “Cue Country Roads.” A throatily belted cover of John Denver’s “Take Me Home Country Roads” typically closes his set with a crowd responding in a hollering, hooting and stomping fervor.
Godwin is a prime representative of how, for many 2026 Stagecoach performers, success represents an imperfectly perfect full-circle moment.
Lainey Wilson performs during her “Country Cool Again Tour” at the Ascend Amphitheater Friday, May 31, 2024 in Nashville, Tenn.
Like many of the acts on Stagecoach’s 2026 lineup, he comes from humble roots, having expected little more than frequent local barnstorming and making enough money to keep a roof over his head and that of his children.
Godwin will perform at Stagecoach in 2026 in different circumstances than even his wildest former dreams.
His has been a featured musician on ESPN’s SportsCenter, as a proud West Virginia University alumnus who once attempted to walk on to the football team.
Look at touring schedules and there he is, as much a fixture as a forthcoming October headliner at Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheater as he is opening for Luke Combs in stadiums nationwide. He will also open for Eric Church and release a Pittsburgh concert as a live album this year.
“It’s gratifying to hear how loud that crowd gets when they’re singing along,” Godwin said. “It makes the journey feel worth it, you know?”
Charles Wesley Godwin performs at Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tenn., on Sunday, June 16, 2024.
Stagecoach 2026 performers, tickets: What to know
Stagecoach Festival tickets are currently available here.
General admission passes start at $549. VIP packages, suites, hotel and resort and camping packages at various price levels are also available.
In alphabetical order, these are the first acts to be announced as confirmed for the 2026 Stagecoach Festival.
Billy Bob Thornton & The Boxmasters
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Stagecoach 2026 includes breakout stars like Charles Wesley Godwin
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