Porter Robinson is gearing up for his main stage Coachella set and bidding farewell to his “Nurture” era. He will be playing the Sunday of this year’s festival on 16th and 23rd, alongside Björk, Fisher and Frank Ocean.
Nurture
Robinson has toured the album extensively across the U.S. and more recently in Asia as restrictions began to ease. He released Nurture in 2021 and toured this lesser than the Worlds album. His return to Coachella after six years with Madeon marked an end for Shelter similar now to Nurture, a full circle moment. We are not sure if he’ll be taking a touring hiatus or if he’s going to do a sort of Nurture 2.0. We do get some insight from his interview with Variety on his preparation for this big farewell.
Porter’s Inspiration – Recap Coachella
Robinson has retrospected the last few years of Coachella and taken pointers for his upcoming set. He recalls Kacey Musgraves’ 2019 Coachella set and her playful game with the audience. Unsure if she or the audience messed up he remembers it as memorable part of her set and how she continues on without flinching if there were issues. Porter is working with the old cliche ‘Be Yourself’.
He remembers Bon Iver’s 2017 Coachella set and the set being a no-frills exploration of the Justin Vernon project’s downtempo album 22, A Million. This stood out especially as Porter’s brother was going through cancer and that album played a really big role for both of them. Justin’s Coachella set was true to himself immersive and exactly what a fan would have wanted to see from him. This is the inspiration Porter is seeking for his upcoming performance.
Coachella 2023
Porter has a couple of surprises in store for us. As he speaks about Nurture coming to an end. How difficult he found adapting it for the 1 hour Coachella setting.
I had a strong gut feeling that I didn’t want to force a moment for hype or to be written up. It’s the end of an era for me, artistically. I don’t want to sacrifice something that is deeply heartfelt for me for a moment that would be exciting for people to say that they came and saw — and that I might regret down the line. You have to edit songs and cut out certain verses. I tend to obsess over that. It’s like Sudoku. You know what things have to be there, you just have to figure out how they’re all meant to fit together in context.
Robinson’s music is earnest and big-hearted, how it fits on the stage and finding his place in the puzzle of Coachella. Second Sky that was started in 2019 is backed by Coachella producer Goldenvoice. It does not surprise us how conscientious Porter is. The experience of running his festival has given him compassion for people that put on festivals. This concern also extends to his audience. He feels responsible towards people’s time and how going to see live music takes a chunk out of his fans’ paychecks.
Robison is gearing up to grace one of the world’s biggest stages. Yet focusing on the small things:
Even if there’s one person here who didn’t sleep last night because they were so excited, I owe it to them in a deeply real and personal way to do everything I can to make it fun and fulfilling.
For everyone attending Coachella have a blast and stay safe. Stay tuned for more Coachella news!
