Call Her Daddy - Alex Cooper x Youtube Presents: BTS of Headlining Coachella (ft. KAROL G) - Part 2

Episode Date: April 18, 2026

Join Alex for an interview with KAROL G during part 2 of the YouTube Coachella Special. KAROL opens up about the creative process behind her Coachella set, how she selected her special guests and what message she wants to tell. Alex then travels to Coachella to meet up with KAROL backstage before her history making moment. Enjoy! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

My real name is Carolina. For nobody, I don't know to see a woman in the genre of the regettor. Oh, my God. He's first lucky in her life. Hey, Daddy Gang. Welcome back to part two

of this very special Carol G. Coachella episode. I just got to Coachella. I'm backstage. I'm about to go hang out with Carol G. And I'm so, so, so excited for you to see this episode. Before we get into it, if you have not watched part one of this series, you have to pause and you need to go watch that.

In episode one, Carol G shared her story of being a teenager growing up in Columbia and then getting to where she is today, headlining Coachella. Now in this episode, Carol is going to talk about her creative inspiration and just the whole process that went into putting this Coachella set together. Before we kick off Coachella with Carol G, we're going to take it back to the studio.

So you can hear from her what went into this set. Let's get into it. Daddy gang, it is your founding father, Alex Cooper, with Call Her. I know that you performed at Coachella in 2022. Now, four years later, yes, you are headlining and it's very well deserved. But where were you when you found out? Like, who called you? What was your reaction?

I'm a loud person. I'm a very loud person. I love to scream. I love to. I think I'm a very loud person, but actually this one got me like super different. Like my sister called me, my sister, she's my sister, and at the same time she's my manager. And she called me and I was like completely shocked. Because I think right now I feel so special that I have the opportunity to be in this generation

that is changing the narrative for our Latina culture. It's super important for me. And when she called me and she told me like, okay, day one, you to be the headliner that is going to close the festival because I have Sunday. So I closed the festival. And it's the first time they're going to have like a Latina women in Spanish being a headliner. So it felt heavy.

You know, it's kind of like crazy. So at that moment I was like kind of little shocked. I got like this silent moment and I was like, okay, let's do it. Like we were talking at the time, we were talking about studying the tour. But then I was like, let's stop everything and let's just focus about this because this is huge. And I really want my community to feel proud. And I really want the world to feel that I was ready for this huge opportunity. How did you begin to come up with what you wanted this message to be?

It's a mix of things. I think in my whole career, like I have had the crazy. experiences, good ones, very bad ones, things that I just feel that I shouldn't live at that time. And because of that, I just feel that I need to speak for women in so many different reasons. So, yeah, there is still, like, the message of my community. We're fighting for rights. But at the same time, there's so many different battles that we have to still keep fighting. for and so I was like thinking how I can put all of these things together and make it work and

make it still like it's a show it's a concert you know so that was the hardest part to get in and we had like five or six different we started from something then it becomes something different and it's like and at the end like well we just built for me it's kind of I love it. it. I'm very hard on myself and to have a show that I love, love, love made me feel like very confident about the show that we have. I just am so impressed because I think, listen, we've seen people go up there and have fun at Coachella, perform their songs. And then we have seen people make statements, whether it was right political or whether it was to represent their community or it was about, yes, like gender, whatever it be. And the fact that you have two huge

things on your shoulders, right? You're trying to speak up for women and you're also trying to speak up for your community. That is a lot. Like, I think about it this year, we had the bad bunny Super Bowl. And this is on the bad bunny Super Bowl. Yes, it was his Super Bowl. Yeah, it was amazing. We've got you headlining. Like, what impact do you hope to see from this massive moment that Latin music is having in American culture right now? I just feel like to have the opportunity to change people's minds it's the most important. It's still like things there are still like running by different people that I don't know how much we can change that.

But at least what I love the most is to see how people, for example, from here, they're fighting for us. And that's what means everything because it's about that. It's about love. It's kind of we're here in this world that it, that is pushing us to be separated in all the way it's possible. And when human, they got this empathy and when humans understand why we are here, that we are all a community. I know it's Latinos, it's Europeans, but at the end, we're us in here in this world. It's kind of a, it's humanity. So I just feel that when

you see that people is open their eyes and understanding that it's, we have to do something together that's going to make the voice louder and that's what we need to get together and speak for everyone at the same time. And in a really powerful way, I feel like something that has always prevailed and risen up is music unites people. Music is this thing that no matter what is going on in the world, it is something that can bring us all together. So kudos to you for doing that. Okay, talking a little bit more about Coachella because now I'm like obviously weekend one happened

we're going into weekend two can you tell us a little bit about once you decided on this vision you're like I need to represent my community I want to speak up for women how did you even think about like the set design and the set list and the costumes

okay that's a good one because as I said before we had like seven different options and not options because we started from this and then I feel like I like this but I don't feel yet what I visualize for this moment. And then we move to here and we just until the moment we get to what we present. Okay.

So I wanted, of course, to represent where I come from. I'm from Colombia. I'm a Colombian and I'm a Latina and I'm a human in this world. And so I can represent how I can represent like my culture, not being, I wanted to go deep. So what existed before the aesthetic of Latinos? You know, like this colorful world, we're really extra. We are full of beautiful, different, even cultures in our culture, because there's Mexican, Colombians, Peruvian, like everything,

and we're from different places and we have our different things. So how can represent everything, but in a way that people can understand because I want the world to understand who we are. And at the same time, like speaking about women, I read a book seven years ago, Las Mujeres Corren with Lois is the name in English, is women that run with wolves. I think it's the meaning. And the book is so beautiful because the book tells you and explain you how women were respected in like years ago. We're talking about like primitive.

Yep. The OG days. Yeah. Exactly. The OG days. All the socialization and society built, like all the way back to the very, very beginning. Exactly. Women were at that time.

Got it. Exactly. So women at that time, we were wild, you know. Everyone was wild at that time. And it was all about intuition, spirituality, like the realness that it is in our energy, in our bodies. And I find always like the energy of women, like the most inspiring thing for me. Like, I love men because I love them. that when I feel something that inspires me a lot,

most of the times it comes from women. Exactly, from women. So when I read that book, I was like so surprised how they used to be the leader of the tribes and everything because of all the energy, you know, even because of their sensuality, their energy, the powerful mind, the power of the body. And then society, a structure system,

they just have been taking that out from us. So I was like, that's a good start to thinking about the stage, to thinking about where I want to put the people, like when they see the show, where are we going to be? So we're going to be in that specific time when women, they just were powerful because of their selves, their inner mind, their inner feelings, there like wildness that is so powerful and so beautiful.

And I want to put the people in that specific time. And I want everyone in that space, even women more, feeling that powerful energy. You know, you can be big feeling intelligent, smart, brilliant. But you can feel like intelligent, smart and brilliant feeling sexy, hot, mamacita, why not? And I want to put that wildness in all the show. So we have like one, two, three, like four different stages. As a people saw, we have four different stages that this kind of of this world where we live in,

that for me would be the perfect world for women to be free. Women are going to be going feral. Like I can't explain even just you sitting in this chair. like it has me getting hype because I'm like, this is what we need right now. So then when you go out on stage, do you ever get nervous that you're going to get choked up and emotional or do you just go right into performer mode and you just have to like black out the emotions? Because this is pretty emotional, Carol.

Literally, I'm the most emotional person that you're going to have sitting in this chair. Like I cried for everything, like happiness, sadness and everything. I think with the time I've been trying to. control it a little more because you understand that sometimes I want to be super genuine and honest with my feelings but sometimes you realize that there's specific places where people is going to be hard on you because you feel real so I'm trying to take care of myself with those things but I'm super emotional it's it happens to me and actually I love my fans because they gave me the confident that I needed to be open with one of my albums,

Mananasa'a'a Onito. I did that album in a specific moment in my life, where I was like really broke, everything in me. And then when I had to put like an album, it was like a, like, songs that I just were like doing just too little feelings. And then when I put all those songs together, then I put that album out because, okay, you have an album, it becomes something that I understood people need it, like a voice, you know,

someone that speaks about realness and real feelings. So after that, like, I feel comfortable. I know they call me a cryer. They call me like, I'm like a kid. They call me like, I'm immature and everything. And girl, yeah, I don't, I just feel that I have the most beautiful memories of my childhood and the way I used to feel at that time. and the way I used to have relationship with people.

And yeah, I didn't grow up. Like, I still want to be there and I'm still that girl. I, and there should be no shame, though. It's like being emotional about things that you love, that's what we live for, right? Like, to actually be affected by those things and to feel it so deeply. Like, that is beautiful. How did you decide for yourself of just like what you wanted to look for when it came to, filling that stage with people.

Okay. With the guests, I started like with different feelings because, okay, I'm going to be a headliner. Cochella is a, there's something special that happens just in Coachella, you know? But at the same time,

I want to just to have the people that, if I'm going to put a song on the show and I have a guest like on the song, like I just want to bring them on stage. because they're part of the success. So I don't sit like in my chair thinking, okay, what would be the greatest guest for the show to, I don't know, to touch someone?

No, no, for me it was about who are the ones that I feel their song to perform. Their song on this show is gonna make a moment very special for my fans and I'm gonna bring them on stage. So it was about that. And actually for one of the moments, specifically talking about the Latina culture, I want to bring someone that has made like an statement for life, you know, legacy, a pioneer of what we do and why we're here.

And that's it. I love it. I love it. I'm so happy for you. Okay. Speaking of your fans, you reference them, they obviously are. obsessed with you, but your fans wear bright blue and red wigs to your shows. And they are very, very, very invested in the different colors that you dye your hair. Can you walk me through

each of your hair color eras and what they represented in your life at the time? Okay, when I was at school. My mom was, she was super open with the idea of me dye like my hair in different colors. I didn't do it like with a chemical in the chemical way, but I don't know if you know there's like a paper that you used to pack presents that they have like if you're putting in hot water, it like just put like the water in the color and I used to pull like my hair there and I got like this little blue or the little, it was like a touch. It wasn't that hard as I did. So when I was in, we were in COVID time and we were just locked. And I was like, okay, this is I don't have interviews. I don't have like shows. I don't have nothing. I really want to

be back in this love that I feel for colors in the hair. So the first one was blue. I am a very colorful girl. And when I say colorful, it's not all the time colorful. It's because. because I see colors. I see everything in colors. Like I see feelings in colors. So sometimes I'm with someone and I'm just, I'm just talking. And I'm like, Alex, like, what I feel for you is pink. And I say that.

Like, I don't know about what I'm feeling right now with you is pink. And sometimes the song for the show, it has to be yellow. And everyone is like, but it's not kind of like black. And I'm like, no, for me it feels yellow. So let's put the visualizers and everything in. yellow. So I don't know, but I see everything in colors. So my soul at that time was feeling blue. So I just put my hair blue and I tried to explain the people why it was blue. And I think my fans, they just got this as I'm feeling blue too. So they put their heads in blue. And the

crazy thing is I never asked for that it started like coming to the shows with the hair blue. And they came to the show at Coachella with the hair blue and it was like this this was this crazy picture about the crowd with this little group of people with the hair blue and I was like I loved it so much and then I was so scared to change the color but I wasn't feeling blue anymore but in that specific time where you're healing there is a rebellion moment you don't come from this to the healing there is a part of you that is tired that it's kind of you know it's rebellion

it's like fiery exactly so it's someone that I start thinking like fuck it like you know I it's just that's it's it's that's it's right for me so I put my hair red and I remember that I was in Santorini and I put my hair red and I was like how do I show this to the world

like I don't know I don't know if I'm going to lose my fandom because they just notice me with this blue hair. Okay, just a video on Instagram, poop. I'm with the red hair right now. And people got crazy with it. So the next time, like I just, the next day, like videos on TikTok and everywhere,

like people going to the salon to change the hair from blue to red. And I was like, oh my God. Okay, that's crazy. My fans are crazy. It's so intense. We have a really, really toxic relationship. With my parents, I have a toxic relationship because we go hard. You go really hard.

Uh-huh. So they always with me, they have my tattoos. They have this tattoo like most of them. I have this tattoo that represent like friendship. And they all of them, they got this. It was like a full codependent relationship. So then wait because I was with red hair. And then when you heal.

Actually, you feel less heavy. You feel, everything feels effortless and everything is just about like chill. You know, you're kind of understanding at a time, now I know how I was feeling that way. Now I understand how, like why I was like with this red idea of this toughness that I needed to be here right now. So it was pink. so for me that era was pink and I knew at a time like if I put my red and pink my fans were about to do it like too so I put my hair pink and then next day videos my fans like please carroll stop bitch because you're gonna make my hair and my even my wallet literally they're like babe my hair is falling out of my head I was with you from the blue then I was okay for the red now we're going to pink I'm gonna have no hair laugh and actually when I was about to come back to my natural color with highlights, but to my natural color. I was crazy about the idea to have it like orange. No. Yeah, but then I was like more conscious about like my fans. You know,

like let's let's have a moment. Let's have a moment to just make the hair too. Exactly. Now I heal. If you is a bottle. Carol, if you went orange, I think your fans would have been like, I've got like three strands of hair left, girl. Okay. I'm going to put these three. Three. little hairs that I have left in orange because of... Yeah, but maybe just one day I can be back. Okay, so now we're going to wait to see if you dye your hair again because now I'm stressed. I would love to. Okay.

I will love to. Like always like fashionable people is always like, girl with your natural color hair, everything looks more elevated and this and that. Like, I don't really care like a lot about it. So maybe I just wake up one day and you're having fun. And it's done. I love it. Okay.

Being a Sunday headliner, Miss Carol G. Are you going to be able to catch anyone else's sets or are you like way too busy rehearsing for all of your stuff? I would love to go. Like actually I'm still a fan girl, you know, and I will love to go to some shows. So maybe for the second weekend, I'm going to be around. So first weekend you'll lock in. Yeah. Second weekend you may go see who.

Yeah. Like, I don't know. But for sure, I really want to see Justin's show. It's a long, long time. He haven't been on stage, and I had the opportunity to meet him at Super Bowl. We weren't the same. Like, Sweden, we talk a lot about, like, what does this mean for us. And actually, his show at the Grammys for me,

I loved it, how he was like in his, like, bed short with his guitar on it. They're just, like, creating the instrumental right there. Like, it was so honest and so pure. And so, I don't know, for me, it has a really big meaning, the show like that. So maybe I'm going to go to that one. I would love to go to see Sabrina's, of course, because I think I want to, I want the people to feel that this is our year. It's not like about like every single year we see these different artists that are going to be there.

But I want the people to feel that this year is about all of us and I want to be for some like some of them. I can be in all of them, but I would love to be in a lot of them. Oh, it's beautiful. As you were speaking about obviously your Coachella set is so focused on celebrating your culture. What do you wish more people understood about Colombia? Oh, beautiful. You nailed it with that question because you said it specific about Colombia. And Colombia is a country that grew from a lot of disaster, from a lot of suffering.

My country is the most beautiful country you're ever going to see. Because when people go there, they notice like we literally, a beautiful country is rich in biodiversity, in animals and different species. of fauna in Florida in Spanish. And the people, we are like, they nos crean. We grew up, like, with attitude is everything. Everything. Even the person in the worst situation,

there's always waking up at 4 a.m. in the morning saying, Diosito, God, this is going to be the day. Even in the worst situation. So when you meet people in Colombia, you're going to feel the most, a big hug from everyone. And speaking about that and about like the strength and the spirit that as a Colombian we have, my country has a beautiful future and an opportunity to be an amazing grown country.

We just need the right people to lead the country, you know. So I just very proud of my country, of the culture that. that represent my country, the music, the artists that have been representing our flag from all over the places. That's a good thing. And you're going to go and you're going to see how beautifully our country has grown from all of the pain and all of the hard times. It's just amazing. It is amazing. And I think that's what is so important right now to be speaking about culture and people and what connects us because we all are. so connected in a way that it feels as of recent we've been made to feel divided and we've been made to feel like other. And I think through your music and through your work and through other artists

and other people, like the more we talk about how we are connected and you speaking about your culture in such a beautiful way, like not that you have to educate people, but it is so important that people like you are able to tell people who you are, where you've come from, how proud you are because it is a really scary time in this country. And I think what you're doing is so beautiful. And I can't wait for the world to see this Coachella set because to even hear that you've infused so much of that love and that culture and your background into it, that's something the world needs to see. And I love that you've brought it here. Thank you. And you know what? Just to add something like a little thing because I can understand that sometimes people think that what

we're doing as a Latinos, it's kind of a trend. It can become something that, ah, they'll come again with their message. Of course, we're having a situation. We're coming, like, we're going through a lot of, I'm not going to say me, but there is a lot of people that is going through a lot of hard things in this country, and it's our responsibility to speak about. But when we do it, we do it like as a welcoming way, you know, we're not saying like, we're this and you're not part of this. No, we're saying, like we're Latinos. We need to speak about from like our culture, our how this community has helped grow this country too. And we're this. We're like fabulous people. We're like a hard worker people with the most beautiful spirit. And you're welcome to join us as a community. We're not

taking no one like out of the situation. It's beautiful. And can you talk a little bit just about your foundation that you have back home in Medine? Concora. Concorda is my foundation. I think we grew up like going to this different like ancianato, like old places with bejitos and for children and everything. That's something that my parents, they put us since we were like little girls. And I think when I grew up, like I think everything needs to have like a circle.

It's not just for me, for me, for me. It has to keep, like, circling. And with the foundation, we worked a lot. Even in my country, that is a beautiful country, but we need a lot of opportunities for the people. Education and support and someone that sees what there wasn't need to see, they don't see. But actually, like, for me, it's so beautiful that all the fans that follows me and go to my shows and they just listen to my music, they're part of this change.

changing situation. They're being part of this foundation too. So I'm very grateful. I love to keep like moving forward with things. And that's what I actually what I feel that as my purpose in the life is that I'm this blessed because I have like a mission. And I'm just making sure that is our mission, all of the people that follows me. And we did this work. It's so beautiful. So special. Okay, Carol, last question. What do you hope fans take away from listening to your music? That's a good one too. I don't know. Like, I'm an open book and I wanted them to find like a space, like a safe space. And that's why I speak about like all of the things in life.

even the uncomfortable things that nobody speaks about, like I'm trying to do music for every situation that I feel for everyone to find like a safe space in my music. And I want them to feel proud at the same time. So that's why I keep like being hard on me and learning and evolving. And yeah. Okay, I'm about to head backstage to meet Carol before she goes on stage to perform. But make sure you guys stick around. for after this episode, watch the live stream only on YouTube

of Carol G's performance. She's gonna kill it. Love you, Carol. Good luck. Mourges. I'm excited. Should we get? Yeah, I'm doing with sewing. You're sewing? Yeah.

You're sewing? Sewing a dress for my knees. What do you mean you're sewing? Is this what you're doing? Are you like calming yourself? No, no, no. My first time doing it for her. Like I like to do things, but like I'm trying to, her things because she came with a Mickey Mouse something and I was like

mom my mom brought her with a Mickey Mouse something you know I was like they look is zero Coachella uh-huh that is less 30 tropical Ketha how are you feeling crazy like I don't know it's it's my feelings are like um I'm kind of happy proud I have a few a lot of nostalgia of course but it's not healthy like it's like a little good nerves it's good nerves but it feels unhealthy it feels like a lot of pressure like the day when we rehearsed like of course we just in we went to Las Vegas and we just built a full stage there and it was amazing but here we were like we built this stage in the level of the floor right but here is in the

level of the stage so it got like massive and the scale of the stage is that huge and it has three levels so I'm on top and I see everyone down there and okay I got nervous yeah this feels real yeah this feels after that it is like I got these special nerves that it they feel little hard what did you do today I woke up really early I trained then I did like two hours and I have of my singing class because I really my vocals be on point for today and then I got here like 11.30 or something. 11.30 in the morning?

Yeah, I'm super obsessed. You guys, just for context, she's going on at 9.55 at night and she got here at 11.30 in the morning. What have you been doing? But I'd rather be here because at least I have my team around and if I have a note or whatever or if they have notes, they come to me and we're close and it's better. You know, like I had just being at home waiting, waiting. No.

gives me more stress. And actually, I think I'm trying to enjoy the day because it's going to pass so fast. I feel like it's going to go by so quickly that once you get out there, right? But the lead-up feels like 12 days. Okay, is there anything that you do before you go on stage that, like, is a non-negotiable,

you have to do it every time before you go on stage? I don't really have a, like, a ritual. My ritual is like I get in me really, like, I have a lot of conversations with myself, but something that is super important is to get together with the whole team with dancers, production, like musicians, band and everyone just to connect really all of us and be ready for the show.

Because sometimes when we don't do it, like I have this feeling, if we don't connect before the show, people is going to feel that disconnection. What is the conversation you have with yourself though before? What are you saying to yourself all day? I treat myself like a little heart with a lot of, yeah, a heart. It's not in a bad way, but it's kind of, you know, there is like in my team for the building of the stage and the music and every detail.

We are like more than 500 people. So it's kind of my face represented, hard work from everyone. So I have to take it with responsibility, you know. It's not about like just, of course I want to have fun. But it's my face that is going to pop up there and show the hard work from everyone, so I have to be like super... You're the leader. Focus, exactly. So it's about that. Now that you know exactly what your show is and we're all about to be able to watch it,

like what do you want your fans to actually feel while you're performing? Proud. Like proud. I really want my community to feel proud and at the same time we are in a festival. I want everyone to jump and to scream and to cry and you know, we're really, we're at the same time we're in a festival. you know we're closing so i really want my show to be the one that put the energy like on the next level how many guests are you bringing out uh one two three four yes or yeah i'm gonna be suck you can't tell us too right no okay okay okay okay okay okay all be on the side say so freaking out i'm super happy that actually you came Because it was a possibility that you wouldn't make it.

It was a huge possibility I was going to make it. And you literally were like, you were leaving the Colorado Studio. Like, you better come, you better come. And I'm like, I don't even know if I'm going to be in the United States. And we made it happen. And I'm so happy. I'm going to be sobbing side stage. Thank you.

Like, there's my girl. Did you come with someone friends? Yes, my husband's here, my friends are here. We're very excited. Okay, okay. We're all very excited. Please have fun. Okay, last question then I'm to let you go.

You tell me. Before you went on that stage tonight, if you could tell your 10-year-old itself, anything. What would you tell her? Oh, it's going to work. It's going to work. Like I like actually in the show is very, they is very deep dedicated to woman and and I just feel that we have to make ourselves really strong in our spirits

because we have to go through a lot of things but at the end it's worth it, you know, to feel that you get through things. and then you achieve goals and you do another one, and you do another one, another one. It's kind of yourself like unlocking these superpowers that every woman has in the world. So I will say to her, like, keep going. It was worth it.

It was worth it. Okay, so your moments from like going on in a couple hours, what are you going to do until that? Are you going to keep? No, I have some meetings after you. You have meetings. Yeah, like meetings with different teams. I got meetings.

And then, no, but after, After like more or less seven, 7.30, you're locking it down. Yeah, I'm locked in. So that's why I asked to do everything before for me to be, yeah, locked in. Ready. I'm so happy for you. Oh, shaking, you see? I'm so happy for you.

You're gonna do so amazing. G, here we come. I'm a big fan. Are you fucking kidding me? Monumental. Monumental. Carol G just hooked this up with cold tequila. Okay, here she comes.

I present myself, I am Carolina Girado from Maine in Colombia. And today, I am the first Latino woman to headline Coachella. And I'm very happy and very proud. Just about me, this is about my Latinos that have been struggling in this country lately.