Lewis Hamilton‘s weekend off didn’t exactly look like a typical recovery day. While most F1 drivers spend a gap in the calendar somewhere quiet, Hamilton turned up in Indio, California, to take in Justin Bieber’s headlining set – with Kim Kardashian alongside him for the evening.
The Ferrari driver explained his schedule ahead of the Miami Grand Prix.
“I was testing the Thursday and the Friday so I got there Saturday evening and I just went to see Justin, went to see my brother. I’m so proud of him and how he performed. It was so intimate as well, was really amazing.”
Bieber took the stage on Saturday, April 11, headlining in front of the enormous Coachella crowd – his first show of that scale in four years, after cancelling his Justice world tour due to health issues.
He opened the 90-minute performance with 11 tracks from Swag and Swag II before moving into a stripped-down, improvisational interlude that unfolded onstage with a laptop and archival clips from his early career.
The Performance That Split the Crowd
Audiences and reviewers argued over whether Bieber’s performance was a clever statement on nostalgia or a lazy display of disrespect.
While some would have preferred a high-budget production, many long-time Bieber fans seemed more than delighted, taking to social media to commend the singer for his “healing” concert, packed with nostalgia.
Hamilton, clearly in the second camp, wasn’t bothered by any of it. And the numbers backed up the warmth in the room regardless of the criticism.
Following the set, Bieber reached No. 1 on Spotify’s Global Top Artist chart, with his catalog surpassing 77 million streams in a single day – his biggest streaming day of the year.
The performance drove 21 of his songs into Spotify’s Global Top 200, the most of any artist following a festival set.
Hamilton wore a Bieberchella hoodie to the show, visibly backing his longtime friend, though the bandana and baseball cap he’d pulled over his face suggests he wasn’t entirely angling for attention. It didn’t work – according to the Daily Mail, their attempts at disguise were seen through quickly, with fans rushing to TikTok to react.
Ferrari got Hamilton back this weekend for the Miami Grand Prix where he starts sixth in front of the American crowds. His team-mate, Charles Leclerc, starts third.
