SZA is brushing off rumors that she's poised to step in at Coachella 2026. The "Good Days" singer has dismissed speculation that she was paid to serve as a backup for the music festival in case Justin Bieber—who's headlining alongside Sabrina Carpenter and Karol G—had to drop out.
"Lmao who made this up?" SZA (born Solána Imani Rowe) commented under an April 10 Instagram post claiming she would fill in for the "Sorry" singer if he couldn't make his April 11 and April 18 performances. "I've seen this 4 times now. I'm in New York, no one paid me a dime. Wishing everyone the best."
The joint post between Blind Items and Music Life featured a picture of the "Kill Bill" singer with the headline, "SZA ALLEGEDLY PAID SIX FIGURES TO STAY COACHELLA-READY IN CASE JUSTIN BIEBER DROPOFF."
Despite SZA—who collaborated on an acoustic version of her 2022 hit "Snooze" with Justin—putting the rumor to rest, fans in the comments were still hopeful that she'd make a cameo during Justin's set. "Did yall forget bieber is in one of her videos / songs… she might pop up on his set atp," one fan wrote, while another added, "@sza baby girl just come, we want to see you."
While any surprise appearances for Justin's highly anticipated performance have yet to be seen, he previously shared insight into what he has in store for fans during his musical set. "I'm gonna do the whole, both [SWAG] projects, probably," he said on a Twitch livestream last October. "And just find a way to merge some of the old songs in where I can. Like, I haven't performed these songs live yet, and that'll be kind of the first time I really do them all live like that."
Though the "Yukon" artist expressed some anxiety over potential touring, he shared on the stream that Coachella was a safe space for him. As he put it, "It soothes the soul."
While Justin hasn't taken the stage as a headliner just yet, Bieber fever has already hit fans on the Coachella grounds. After all, the "Baby" singer's pal Kylie Jenner debuted a few Justin-inspired fashion statements ahead of his performance. Indeed, The Kardashians star marked her arrival to the desert by rocking an oversized tank top bearing Justin's face. Even more, she showed off her floral manicure nodding to the singer's 2025 single "Daisies," writing on Instagram Stories, "It’s giving Bieberchella."
