On Day 3 of Stagecoach, the Empire Polo Club in Indio was primed for one more big Western outing before the festival rode off into the sunset.
After Saturday’s excitement with the festival evacuating attendees due to wind, things were still rocking before the gates even opened — though it was mostly caused by Mother Nature. The morning started with a rumble when a magnitude 3.4 earthquake hit 10 miles from Cabazon at 8:44 a.m.
As for the music, there were plenty of big moments worth making it out for the festival’s final day. Sunday night brought us a Post Malone headlining set, more ‘90s nostalgia courtesy of Hootie & the Blowfish and special guest Public Enemy and the most famous cameo we saw that day — the old Arby’s sign from Sunset Boulevard.
Check out our recap of everything we saw on Day 3 of Stagecoach.
Shaboozey joins the crowd as they vibe to beats during Diplo’s set featuring Theo Von, B2B, Caleb Pressley, Sydney Sweeney and others on the second day of Stagecoach.
(Evan Schaben / For The Times)
Getting tipsy in Shaboozey’s pop-up saloon
Stagecoach has always been full of branded pop-ups — well before the corporations invaded Coachella — but this year was all about the celebrity bar.
Sydney Sweeney had a pop-up bar on the festival grounds for her Syrn lingerie line that offered karaoke, magnetic darts, and, of course, booze, near other brand booths such as Arby’s and Alaska Airlines.
Shaboozey’s pop-up saloon took a little more work to find. Tucked into the 12 Peaks area, which is general admission during Stagecoach — it’s VIP-only during Coachella — Cherie Lee’s is built to look like an old West saloon on the outside. You know you’re in the right place when you find an old-timey “Wanted” poster with the image of the “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” singer out front. You walk down a dimly lit hallway (honestly, it gave Disneyland Big Thunder Mountain line vibes), and through swinging saloon doors into a cozy room.
They were giving out black bandannas with a drawing of Cherie Lee’s saloon emblazoned with Shaboozey “The Outlaw Cherie Lee,” the name of his forthcoming concept album.
There’s a tag on the bandanna that allows you to give them your information in order to hear some of the new music.
Like Sweeney’s pop-up, this saloon isn’t totally for show — there are selected premixed cocktails available. And when I was there, there was someone dressed in old-timey garb playing a banjo. (Vanessa Franko)
Crowds gather around a repurposed Arby’s sign from the former restaurant on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood on Friday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
We found the iconic Arby’s sign from Sunset Boulevard
At Stagecoach, the one burning question this whole weekend has been this iconic sign that people are passing by on the polo fields — is it the original neon cowboy hat from the Sunset Boulevard Arby’s?
Local Arby’s franchisee Roger Amaya tells us it is! “We were thinking about the iconic sign that was going to get torn down. Our CEO, Amir Siddiqi, was able to grasp it,” Amaya said. “As you can see, everyone’s loving it. Everyone’s getting a photo op standing in front of it.” As a bonus, the iconic sign appears to be in great shape.
“We were able to get our neon sign guy named James to restore the whole sign,” Amaya said. After Stagecoach, where is the cowboy hat sign going next? “That is the big question,” Amaya said. “So you got to stay tuned.” (Mikael Wood)
Third Eye Blind lead singer and guitarist Stephan Jenkins performs on the Mustang Stage at Stagecoach on Sunday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Third Eye Blind wins the battle of the ‘90s sunset acts
Between Counting Crows, Bush and Third Eye Blind, all ‘90s alt artists booked for the sunset set on the Mustang Stage throughout Stagecoach 2026, the latter drew the biggest crowd on Sunday evening with a mix of hits that hit the best of the band’s first two records.
“Never Let You Go,” “Graduate” and “Jumper” were highlights early in the set before closing with “Semi-Charmed Life” and “How’s It Gonna Be.”
“Thank you for loving us,” singer Stephan Jenkins said. “We didn’t know how this was gonna go.”
He need not have worried. (V.F.)
Ronnie Dunn, right, and Kix Brooks, of Brooks & Dunn, perform on the Mane Stage during the final day of Stagecoach.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Brooks & Dunn bring a reminder of Stagecoach’s roots
However pop-minded Stagecoach has become in the last five to 10 years, the festival still holds down its centrist-country roots, as Brooks & Dunn showed Sunday night with a rowdy yet polished main-stage performance that featured plenty of the duo’s down-the-middle hits — “Brand New Man,” “Red Dirt Road,” “Neon Moon” — and concluded with a rendition of “Only in America” that had the two veteran musicians positioned before a line of proud police officers. (M.W.)
Hootie & the Blowfish lead singer and guitarist Darius Rucker performs on the Mustang Stage at Stagecoach on Sunday.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Hootie & the Blowfish have a political moment at Stagecoach with Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Flavor Flav
Hootie & the Blowfish is known for a good time. The band’s pop-rock hits are infectious. Singer Darius Rucker found fame with a solo country career and has played Stagecoach before. On Sunday night, the band played its biggest hits, including “Hold My Hand,” “Time” and “Let Her Cry,” but they also made a political statement.
Notable moments of the set included a rollicking version of “Wagon Wheel” that had the crowd singing and dancing along, covers of REM’s “Losing My Religion” and Led Zeppelin’s “Hey Hey What Can I Do” and the massive Hootie hit “Only Wanna Be With You” with a funk break for a mid-song cover of Kool & the Gang’s “Get Down On It.”
But the highlight of the performance was the end. The band closed its set with a cover of Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth” before bringing out Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Flavor Flav to join them and also to perform “Fight the Power.”
It seemed rather poignant to have the moment at the conservative-leaning Stagecoach, a festival where organizers had to ban Confederate flag gear a few years back, but hopefully the moment wasn’t lost on the partying masses. “With everything going on in the world these days, I think it’s a good place for the song,” Rucker told The Times prior to his band’s performance. (V.F.)
Fans cheer at Stagecoach.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Post Malone closes Stagecoach with style if not excitement
Almost exactly a year after he closed out Coachella in 2025, Post Malone returned to the Empire Polo Club late Sunday to headline the final night of Stagecoach.
“Who’s f— thirsty this evening, ladies and gentlemen?” he asked not long into the show — Malone’s way of introducing his song “Pour Me a Drink,” for which he opened a can of his beloved Bud Light by smashing it against his head.
Stylistically, Malone’s 90-minute set was in line with the shows he’s been playing since he dropped his first official country album, “F-1 Trillion,” in 2024; the sound was high-gloss Nashville-alia purveyed by a crack group of players, including fiddlers and background singers. (M.W.)
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