Sabrina Carpenteris apologizing over a controversial crowd interaction during herCoachellaset.
The "Please Please Please" singer, 26,said on Xshe is sorry for her reaction to hearing a zaghrouta, an Arabic call of celebration, in the crowd while performing on April 10 at theCoachella Valley Music and Arts Festivalin Indio, California.
"My apologies i didn't see this person with my eyes and couldn't hear clearly. my reaction was pure confusion, sarcasm and not ill intended. could have handled it better! now i know what a Zaghrouta is!" Carpenter wrote on April 11, adding, "I welcome all cheers and yodels from here on out."
Video footagecirculated on social mediashowing the Grammy-winning pop star expressing confusion and displeasure after hearing a zaghrouta, which she mistook for a yodel, in the audience while on stage at Coachella. "Is that what you're doing? I don't like it," she said.
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A fan could be heard yelling back, "It's my culture," to which the singer quipped, "That's your culture, is yodeling?" The person in the crowd could then be heard shouting, "It's a call of celebration," leading Carpenter to joke, "Is this Burning Man? What's going on? This is weird."
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ArabAmerica.com describesa zaghrouta as "a long, wavering, high-pitched vocal sound representing trills of joy" that is "commonly performed in weddings, parties, celebrations and sometimes in funerals to honor someone and to express strong emotions." In 2020,Shakiraincorporated one into her Super Bowl halftime show performance, leading numerous news outlets topublish articles explainingthe significance of the sound.
Sabrina Carpenter's 'pit stop':How to go during Coachella
Coachella 2026 kicked off Friday, April 10, with performers such as KATSEYE, Nine Inch Noize, Disclosure, Anyma and Sabrina Carpenter. See the best photos starting with the "Espresso" singer's headlining set.
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Sabrina Carpenter, seen through one of her video boards, performs her headlining set during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Sabrina Carpenter performs her first headlining set on the video boards of the Coachella stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Disclosure performs at the Outdoor Theatre during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Guy Lawrence of Disclosure performs at the Outdoor Theatre during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Disclosure performs at the Outdoor Theatre during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Disclosure performs at the Outdoor Theatre during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Leven Kali performs a song with Disclosure at the Outdoor Theatre during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Leven Kali performs a song with Disclosure at the Outdoor Theatre during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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KATSEYE performs on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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KATSEYE performs on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami join KATSEYE to sing ‘Golden’ on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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KATSEYE performs on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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KATSEYE performs on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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KATSEYE performs on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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KATSEYE performs on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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KATSEYE performs on the Sahara stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Moby performs in the Mojave tent during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Moby performs in the Mojave tent during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Moby performs in the Mojave tent during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Moby performs in the Mojave tent during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. on April 10, 2026.
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Joe Jonas joins Teddy Swims on the Coachella Stage during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Joe Jonas joins Teddy Swims on the Coachella Stage during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Teddy Swims performs on the Coachella Stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Andrea (left) and Jewlz of The Two Lips perform in the Sonora tent during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Andrea of The Two Lips smiles to the crowd while playing in the Sonora tent during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Jewlz of The Two Lips performs in the Sonora tent during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. on April 10, 2026.
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Colet of Bini performs on the Mojave stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Sheena Catacutan of Bini performs on the Mojave stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on Friday, April 10, 2026.
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Bini performs on the Mojave stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Stacey of Bini sings on the Mojave stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Bini performs on the Mojave stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Fans sing along and cheer for Bini during their Weekend 1 set at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Sheena Catacutan of Bini performs on the Mojave stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Sheena Catacutan of Bini performs on the Mojave stage during Weekend 1 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Asheville alt-rock band Wednesday performs inside Sonora at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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Asheville alt-rock band Wednesday performs inside Sonora at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 10, 2026.
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See Coachella 2026 Weekend 1 kick off with Sabrina Carpenter, KATSEYE
Coachella 2026kicked off Friday, April 10, with performers such as KATSEYE, Nine Inch Noize, Disclosure, Anyma and Sabrina Carpenter. See the best photos starting with the "Espresso" singer's headlining set.
Some fans on social media expressed outrage over Carpenter's reaction, includingone user whocalled her comments "so insensitive and islamophobic" and added, "I am very disappointed in her."
Another X user wrote, "Do I think sabrina meant harm with her comment? no. do i think it highlights how little white women are conscious of things outside of themselves? yeah a little."
Carpenter headlined the first night of the music festival on April 10, performing a set that was filled with surprise celebrity cameos.Will Ferrellpopped up to play a frustrated electrician,Susan Sarandondelivered a lengthy monologue during an interlude, andSamuel L. Jacksonmade a voice cameo as a spiritual guide, who was heard during a break in Carpenter's "Juno" performance.
This was Carpenter's first time headlining at Coachella. She previously performed at the festival in 2024 and predicted she would be back, singing, "Coachella, see you back here when I headline."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Sabrina Carpenter sorry for Coachella reaction to Arabic chant