• by Colin Kirkland , April 9, 2024

Following last year’s launch of Coachella Island, the popular California music festival is furthering its three-year partnership with Fortnite. During this year's festival, fans will be able to “play” Coachella on virtual stages alongside headliners, and explore a new virtual island in Epic Games' sandbox game.

Starting today, fans will be able to play the festival's first virtual stages ever in Fortnite Festival, with a themed takeover of the Jam Stage, complete with recognizable Coachella landmarks like Le Grande Wheel, Spectra Tower and more.

On the Festival Main Stage, players can perform Jam Tracks from featured artists performing at this year's festival alongside show visuals inspired by Coachella stages.

This year's Jam Tracks include Blur's “Song 2,” Bleachers' “I Wanna Get Better,” Doja Cat's “Paint the Town Red,” Sublime's “What I Got” and more by artists on the 2024 lineup, including Taking Back Sunday, Peso Pluma, Lil Uzi Vert, Pink Pantheress, and Ice Spice.

In line with the launch of last year's Coachella Island -- which features an art park full comprised of virtual installations by community creators -- Coachella is unveiling Sahara Island, built using Epic's Unreal Editor for Fortnite.

The new virtual island mirrors the physical debut of Coachella's Sahara Tent stage.

Fortnite users will be able to check out virtual art experiences by Coachella 2024 artists Grimes and DJ Snake.

At-home viewers can also watch the Sahara Tent shows on Coachella YouTube livestream during the second weekend, with an augmented reality component blending the real-life performances with elements in Sahara Island.

According to Coachella's innovation leader Sam Schoonover, the festival has continued to partner with Fortnite because it allows fans to connect with the brand beyond the festival grounds in Indio, California.

By launching new in-game music experiences, remote Fortnite users still have the option to interact with Coachella in an alternatively immersive way, while providing the six-day festival in April with the means to attract fans throughout the year and create branding opportunities with popular artists via emotes and digital outfits.