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    Stagecoach 2023: Our 50 best photos from the country music festival
    • May 1, 2023

    The 15th annual Stagecoach Country Music Festival in Indio was certainly a memorable one.

    It was the hottest installment of the festival weather wise that our crew can recall, with temperatures staying about about 103-105 throughout the three-day weekend on April 28-30. The sun showed no mercy and absolutely cooked the fans that came out for early sets by acts like Priscilla Block, Corey Kent, Lily Rose, Flamin’ Groovies, Nikki Lane, Drake Milligan, Luke Grimes, Sierra Ferrell and more.

    It cooled off in time for the top-tier acts on the Mane Stage, Palomino and the Honky Tonk each evening including Luke Bryan, Jon Pardi, ZZ Top, Melissa Etheridge and Girl Talk on Friday night; Kane Brown, Old Dominion, Bryan Adams, Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives and Dillon Francis on Saturday; and Chris Stapleton, Brooks & Dunn, Tyler Childers, Turnpike Troubadours and Los Frequencies on Sunday.

    Mikenna Legerski, of Corona, center right, and David Schlapkohl, of Riverside, dance in the Honky Tonk during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Country artist Elle King performs on the Mane Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    ZZ Top’s Elwood Francis performs before an overflow crowd on the Palomino Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country artist Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives perform on the Palomino Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country music artist Elle King blows a kiss to the crowd in the Shein Saloon as Anneliese King, no relation, 5, from Burbank, looks on on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Members of Old Dominon perform on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    A Guy Fieri assistant flips a 6 pound hamburger made from bison and elk in the Smokehouse on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons performs before an overflow crowd on the Palomin Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Brooks and Dunn perform on the Mane Stage on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Bobby and Kim Gardner, from Lake Elsinore, share a moment together as they watch and listen to country artist Parker McCollum on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Actor, and star of the televison show Yellowstone, Luke Grimes performs with his band on the Mane Stage on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country music fan Sydney Willis, from Portland, Oregon sings along to Sammy Kershaw on the Palomino Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Laird Hall, from Calgary, Alberta Canada, dances with his wife Lisa as Sammy Kershaw plays on the Palomino Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Mary Chapin Carpenter performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Country singer and Yellowstone actress Lainey Wilson reacts to a slab of grilled tomahawk steaks during a cooking demonstration in the Guy Fieri’s Smokehouse on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Ronnie Dunn and Kix Brooks of Brooks and Dunn perform on the Mane Stage on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    A country music fan reaches out as Luke Bryan performs on the Mane Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Melissa Etheridge performs to an overflow crowd on the Palomino Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    A country music fan watches as Gabby Barrett performs on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country artist Lainey Wilson perfroms on the Mane Stage on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country music fans watch as Luke Bryan performs on the Mane Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Kane Brown performs on the Mane Stage as he closes the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country music fans sing along to Old Dominion on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    A couple dances as the sun sets on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Nikki Lane performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Country music fans listen along to Kane Brown on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    A fan sits a top a persons shoulders as Melissa Etheridge performs to an overflow crowd on the Palomino Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country artist Luke Bryan performs on the Mane Stage on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Bennett Wise, from Thousand Oaks, tries to cools off under a sprinkler on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. Temperatures reached into the triple digits. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Ryan Bingham performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Gabby Barrett performs on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Turnpike Troubadours’ Kyle Nix performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Festival goers hang out in the Spectra art installation during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Festival goers move about the ferris wheel during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    ZZ Top’s Elwood Francis, left, and Billy Gibbons performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, April 28, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Monica Cooper, of Los Angeles, poses for a photo in the Shein Saloon during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, April 28, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Festival goers walk out of the Spectra art installation during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Festival goers walk across the field as the sun sets on the last day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Fans watch as Nelly performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Nelly performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Kellanie Perea, of San Diego, dances in the Honky Tonk during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Trixie Mattel performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, April 28, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Fans watch as Trixie Mattel performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, April 28, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Priscilla Block performs on the Mane Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, April 28, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Brooks & Dunn’s Kix Brooks, left, and Ronnie Dunn perform on the Mane Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

    Country artist Lainey Wilson perfroms on the Mane Stage on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Country singer and Yellowstone actress Lainey Wilson along with show creator Taylor Sheridan prepare to sample a steak sandwich as they stand along side Guy Fieri in Guy Fieri’s Smokehouse on the final day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Sunday, Apr. 30, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    A country music fan cools off in a set of sprinklers on the opening day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Pole Club in Indio on Friday, Apr. 28, 2023. Temperatures at the festival reached into the triple digits Friday. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Kane Brown performs on the Mane Stage as he closes the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

    Braxton Phillips holds up his mom Tino, of Roseville, as Melissa Etheridge performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Friday, April 28, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

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    There were also after-parties each evening following the Mane Stage headliners over at Late Night in Palomino.

    On Friday, drag queen, TV personality and singer-songwriter Trixie Mattel entertained the masses. Saturday, rapper Nelly drew an enormous crowd over to his turn, which featured songs like “E.I,” “Shake Ya Tail Feather,” “Air Force Ones” and he brought out Friday performer Breland to sing on “Country Grammar.” Honky Tonk curator and original Stagecoach after-party artist Diplo officially closed out the show on Sunday with a classic rock, country and EDM-filled set that fans went wild for as they danced, sang and enjoyed every last moment of Stagecoach.

     More Stagecoach Country Music Festival news

    Stagecoach 2023: How the TV series ‘Yellowstone’ took over the festival

    Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 3

    Stagecoach 2023: Chris Stapleton, Brooks & Dunn and Diplo wrap up the fest

    Stagecoach 2023: 5 fun non-music activities to do at the festival 

    Stagecoach 2023: Ready to party, yet stay sober? There’s a tent for that

    Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 2

    Stagecoach 2023: Kane Brown, Bryan Adams and Nelly close out Day 2

    Stagecoach 2023: Guy Fieri, Jon Pardi toss barbecued turkey legs to hungry fans 

    Stagecoach 2023: Trixie Mattel slays Late Night in Palomino performance 

    Stagecoach 2023: See photos of performers and fans from Day 1

    Stagecoach 2023: Luke Bryan keeps fans singing, Jon Pardi gets a surprise on stage during Day 1

    Stagecoach 2023: Country music fans, performers brave the heat and cut loose during Day 1

    ​ Orange County Register 

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