Katy Perry reacts to Justin Bieber's Coachella performance: 'Thank God he has Premium...'

Dubai: Justin Bieber made his long-awaited return to the big stage as one of Coachella 2026's headline acts on Saturday night, and while his performance divided opinion, it was Katy Perry's reaction from the crowd that had everyone talking.

The 41-year-old was spotted dancing along to Bieber's set, and when the pop star pulled up YouTube on a laptop as part of his show, Perry delivered what may be the most relatable celebrity quip of the festival season. "Thank God he has Premium," she joked. "I don't wanna see no ads."

The comment went viral almost immediately. "She's one of us lol," wrote one fan on social media. "She's always been the funniest pop star," added another. "Honestly she's not wrong, he can afford Premium, we need no interruption," chimed in a third.

Bieber's Coachella performance

Bieber's performance was unlike anything Coachella has seen in recent memory, and that was entirely by design. The 32-year-old took to a stripped-back stage dressed in a hoodie and shorts, sat in front of a laptop and spent much of the night singing along to YouTube videos of his older hits including Baby and Never Say Never.

The singer also bagged 10 million dollars for the performance according to a fan tweet.

He also pulled up home videos from his early years on the big screen, the clips that first brought him to the world's attention as a twelve-year-old being discovered on the platform, and appeared to interact with the live comments streaming on YouTube during the broadcast.

He opened alone on an empty stage performing tracks from his 2025 albums Swag and Swag II, before telling the crowd he wanted to take them on a journey. "How far back do you go?" he asked the audience repeatedly as he reached deeper into his archive.

He also played the clip that recently went viral for different reasons, in which he confronted a photographer and said: "It's not clocking to you, I'm standing on business." Musical guests including The Kid Laroi, Wizkid, Tems and Dijon joined him during the set.

A performance that divided the crowd

Reactions were split. Some fans found the nostalgic format lazy and low effort, while others embraced it as a genuinely moving tribute to the platform that launched his career. Hailey Bieber was in the crowd watching, as were Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner.

The performance marked Bieber's biggest live show in four years. He cancelled his Justice world tour in 2022 after being diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt syndrome, a condition that caused facial paralysis. His return to the Grammy stage in February 2025 and the surprise release of Swag that same year signalled his comeback, and Saturday night in the California desert felt like the full circle moment his fans had been waiting for.