Justin Bieber Did Not Skip Old Songs at Coachella Because of Catalog Sale: Here Is the Real Reason | 2026 Coachella Music Festival, Coachella, Justin Bieber | Celebrity News and Gossip | Entertainment, Photos and Videos

Justin Bieber‘s set during Weekend 1 at 2026 Coachella Music Festival is causing some discourse – and some incorrect takes.

The 32-year-old “Baby” performer made headlines after dedicating a portion of his set to searching for old clips on YouTube and singing along with the crowd, prompting some to speculate that he was blocked from performing certain songs due to the recent sale of his music catalog for over $200 million.

Keep reading to find out more…

However, that is not the case.

Justin did indeed sell the rights to many of his old hits, like “Baby” and “Love Yourself,” back in 2023. Viral tweets and some headlines incorrectly declared that deal blocked him from performing those hits at Coachella, but insiders confirmed that sale doesn’t stop him from performing those songs live.

“That’s nonsense. There are no restrictions on what he can or can’t do in live performance,” a source familiar with the catalog deal told Billboard.

Playing a song in concert only requires a “public performance” license, and venues usually secure blanket licenses from groups like ASCAP and BMI to cover those performances, per the music news outlet.

“Selling one’s music rights — to recorded masters or of a song catalog or royalty streams — does not preclude an artist from performing any song, including their own, in a live setting,” the outlet further noted.

The fact that Justin only sang along to about 12 songs from his back catalog is the result of his own decision, not a deal restriction.

He largely dedicated his set to his most recent set of albums, SWAG and SWAG II, and Billboard hypothesized that only playing a handful of old songs was merely because they “otherwise felt out of place in the set — even to those who don’t want to admit it.”

See what songs Justin Bieber played at Coachella Weekend 1, and find out which stars were in attendance.