Benson Boone lit up the main stage at Coachella on Friday night (April 11) by bringing out surprise guest Brian May for a powerful rendition of Queen’s iconic 1975 hit “Bohemian Rhapsody.” However, according to the “Beautiful Things” singer, the audience’s reaction was not what he expected.
After the event, the 22-year-old rising star took to TikTok to share a video poking fun at the typical lack of enthusiasm from the Coachella crowd. “Me trying to get the Coachella audience to understand the absolute legend that Brian May is and the cultural impact he has on music and THE WORLD,” Boone wrote alongside a clip of himself lip syncing to “Bohemian Rhapsody” with a banana as a microphone, and then looking visibly confused and frustrated while pretending not to hear any reaction from the audience.
Meanwhile, on Instagram, May expressed how excited he was to join Boone on stage. “I’m still on cloud nine after last night at Coachella,” the Queen guitarist wrote alongside a photo of Boone jumping on him on stage. “Thanks to all of you who made it feel so special. You know who you are! And this particular way of concluding ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ will be hard to top in the coming years! Thank you. And to Benson and all his team, I have no words. I’m amazed.”
Check out the post here.
Similarly, on his own profile, Boone praised May and thanked his team for organizing his performance, writing, “@brianmayforreal I have no words. You are easily one of the most legendary musicians of all time and I cannot thank you enough for coming out. Thank you to my band, my team, the design teams, my managers, friends, family, and loved ones without whom I wouldn’t be here. I can’t wait to be back at Coachella next weekend. Thank you for inviting me and thank you for everything you do, even if it’s just a simple stream. I love this job, I love this life, I love music, and I love the people around me. God bless you all.”
Check out Boone’s post here.
The Grammy-nominated singer will return to Coachella for the festival’s second weekend on Friday (April 18).