Sabrina Carpenter apologized for mixing up the Arab celebratory cry known as Zaghrouta with yodeling during her performance at the 2026 Coachella Music Festival. The artist of the song "Espresso" stated in a post on the X social network on Saturday, "I’m very sorry, I didn’t see this person with my own eyes and clearly didn’t hear them. My reactions were pure shock and sarcasm, not malicious. I could have handled it better! Now I know what Zaghrouta is."

In a video clip from Carpenter's performance at the festival on Friday night, an audience member can be heard letting out a Zaghrouta cry. Sitting behind the piano on stage, Carpenter said, "I think I heard someone yodeling. Is that what you’re doing? I don’t like that." When the audience member replied, "This is my culture," Carpenter asked again, "Yodeling is your culture?" The audience member clarified, "It’s a celebratory cry."

Carpenter's reaction spread widely on social media and sparked backlash. Many users criticized Carpenter for not knowing that the cry was an element of Arab culture, highlighting the insensitivity it demonstrated. Some commentators expressed that they found the artist's behavior Islamophobic.

Carpenter performed as the first major artist of the 2026 festival on the main stage of Coachella on Friday night. Justin Bieber and Karol G are also among the other major artists this year; Bieber will perform on Saturday, and Karol G on Sunday as the first week comes to a close. Carpenter's stage performance featured guest appearances from celebrities like Sam Elliott, Susan Sarandon, and Will Ferrell. Additionally, she debuted some songs from her latest album, Man's Best Friend, including "We Almost Broke Up Last Night" and "When Did You Get Hot?"

Carpenter will perform her second major set at Coachella next Friday (April 17).