Best of Stagecoach 2022: Axl Rose, Brothers Osborne, Diplo, Smokey Robinson, The Black Crowes

The folding chairs are back in the trunk and the cowboy hat made from a Budweiser case is being returned to the back of the closet as the triumphant return of Stagecoach has come and gone.

There's no doubt that the moment that most had fans wiping the dust from their eyes in amazement was the power couple we never knew we needed: Carrie Underwood and Axl Rose. Rose joined Underwood to perform "Sweet Child O' Mine" and "Paradise City" in one of the greatest surprise guest performances in Stagecoach history.

Fascinating crossover in that a rocker like Rose was the biggest surprise at Stagecoach, while country star Shania Twain (playing with Harry Styles) was the biggest surprise at Coachella. Memor-making moments to be sure.

Not everyone partying in the camping ground will have lasting memories from this year's country music extravaganza, but The Desert Sun staffers shuffling around the grounds have memories.

These are the moments that stick out y'all.

Brothers Osborne redemption

After a self-admitted terrible set in 2018 due to immense winds that had all that night's acts struggling, the Brothers Osborne returned with a stellar redemptive set on Saturday night. With John shredding and T.J. belting, Brothers Osborne killed it, and the set had some poignancy as well as T.J. thanked the crowd for combatting the country music fan stereotype and showing up to support a gay man on the Mane Stage. T.J. Osborne came out in February of 2021. The band played the song "Younger Me" about his struggles to come out as a younger man, and the emotion was heavy, but in a positive way. — Shad Powers

Review: Redemption for Brothers Osborne with poignant, powerful set

Margo Price delivers

Margo Price started her set by riding a horse to the stage to deliver a flawless performance, switching between sounds of Americana and rock, often in the same songs, and playing psychedelic guitar riffs and '80s synthesizer sound effects. The audience loved it, didn't want to see her go and booed towards the end of her 45-minute set when she announced her final song of the night. — Brian Blueskye

More: Review: Margo Price rides in on a horse, leaves crowd wanting more music

Diplo sent the festival off on a sweaty high

I've been to my share of Electronic Dance Music shows in my day, and especially during my college years. But no amount of time dancing to bass drops among sweaty frat bros could've prepared me for the sight of seeing the DJ icon Diplo close out Stagecoach inside a packed Palomino tent. I've always like Diplo (I mean who among us doesn't love them some "Lean On?") But hearing him expertly weave in and transition from snippets of such country hits as "Life Is A Highway" and "Before He Cheats" (the crowd really got going for that one) to more classically mixable songs such as Avicii's "Wake Me Up" and Outkast's "Hey Ya" was something else entirely. And then there was the sight of thousands of the same country kids I had spent all weekend watching crush Mich-ultras and dance to songs about bourbon and trucks lose their minds while screaming every word of that sacred club classic, Lil Jon's "Get Low." That was something to behold. By the time Diplo sent us off with a few notes of "California Dreamin'" and a see you next year, I was fully converted to the Diplo way of Stagecoach life. And you gotta love a festival that saves some of its best beats for last. — Paul Albani-Burgio

Sucker for a cover

My favorite song is often, whatever one I know the words to, whether it's actually a good song or not. Basically, I love when a band drops in a cover song. Yola, the British belter who played Coachella and Stagecoach this year, livened her set with a beautiful rendition of Elton John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road." It was a goosebumps moment for me. — Shad Powers

Chris Gaines, was that you?

Speaking of covers, there's something very special about a sing-a-log with a crowd as big as we saw at Stagecoach this year. When the sing-a-long is to a cover of the Garth Brooks classic "Friends in Low Places," count me in. On Friday night, headliner Thomas Rhett launched into a rowdy, sprawling rendition and even brought some friends on the stage to join in. First, it was a seemingly random fan plucked from the audience who proved HE HAD PIPES (turned out to be country artist HARDY). Was I the only person wondering if it was Chris Gaines at first? I mean ... if that wasn't enough, longtime Stagecoach fan Ashton Kutcher joined in the fun. And what he lacked in pitch he compensated with some unbridled enthusiasm. — Kate Franco

Review: Thomas Rhett set makes for 'Unforgettable' end to first night of festival with Ashton Kutcher cameo

Motown crashes country party

Legendary singer-songwriter Smokey Robinson united Stagecoach fans of all ages with the melodies of Motown on the Palomino Stage Sunday night. The 82-year-old crooner wowed an endless sea of fans that stretched well beyond the Palomino tent from the moment he began singing until the moment he ended. With tender hits like "Being with You" and "Ooo Baby Baby," he had couples young and old embracing and swaying to the music. And, he got the whole crowd to belt out "My Girl," the number one hit he wrote for The Temptations. — Jonathan Horwitz

Review: Smokey Robinson killed it at the country festival (yes, you read that right)

The brothers Robinson put the jam back in the band

Not to be outdone by Smokey, two other Robinsons — Chris and Rich of The Black Crowes — took to the Mane Stage just as the elder was wrapping up in the Palomino tent, and anyone who has been craving some jam-band rock during this festival season in Indio finally got it. I saw a lot of The Black Crowes in the '90s and when I say my soul left my body during their several extended jams it's just a slight exaggeration. — Kate Franco

Review: The Black Crowes bring boogie woogie and rock to the Mane Stage

Surprise! It's Axl Rose

While making my way through the Mane Stage area toward the end of Carrie Underwood's set as she sang her cover of the Guns N' Roses song "Sweet Child of Mine," I had to stop when I heard Carrie say "Give it up for Axl Rose!" I remember watching Underwood perform a cover of their song "Paradise City" at the 2008 festival, and it sounded even better on Saturday night when they performed it together and the pyrotechnics filled the sky. — Brian Blueskye

A DJ set for millennial women everywhere

Although I’m slightly embarrassed to admit it, some of the most fun I’ve ever had at a music festival was at “The Bachelorette” alum Blake Horstmann’s Saturday night DJ set in the Honkytonk. Yes, I know Stagecoach is about live country music, not fangirling over hot reality stars-turned-DJs spinning pop hits, but somehow I found myself in the front row of Horstmann’s set, screaming along to an infectious remix of Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me” and waving my hand high when he yelled “where my California girls at?!” before playing Katy Perry’s ode to the Golden State. I looked behind me a few songs in and realized I was in a sea of 20-something women who looked exactly like me, jumping up and down excitedly as if we were at a “Backstreet Boys” arena tour stop rather than a minimally well-known white boy’s amateur DJ set. But what can I say? Horstmann is a charming guy, and there was just something special about the energy he brought to the Honkytonk in what reality TV fans were jokingly calling his “Stagecoach comeback” online (the last time he was here he infamously broke two women’s hearts — but I won’t bore you with the niched reality TV drama). — Niki Kottmann

A tasty front row seat to Flavortown

The Mayor of Flavortown Guy Fieri stopped by the country music festival to feed hundreds of hungry bellies with the help of some of his friends. On Saturday, the Food Network host invited "barbecue legends" Kevin Bludso, owner of Bludso’s BBQ in Compton, and Chris Schobel, owner of Fat Daddy’s Smokehouse restaurant in Kihei, Hawaii. The two chefs prepared quite a hearty meal for people who came to watch their demo: a whole hog, smoked pork belly burnt ends and cornbread. Each item was melt-in-your-mouth good, but my only complaint is that they gave everyone tiny, bite-sized portions. It was so tasty that I was ready to eat the whole pig! — Ema Sasic

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Best of Stagecoach 2022: Axl Rose, Diplo, Smokey Robinson, Black Crowes