Meet the man behind Desert Underground, a musical movement happening in a Coachella backyard

On a Friday night in Coachella, the sounds of sierreño music, rock 'n' roll and hip-hop boom from a stage with colorful flashing lights and giant firework sparklers. About 400 people dance or hold their phones in the air to capture the moment.

They are at a concert in Angel Chavez's backyard.

Nobody who knows Chavez seems surprised that the Coachella native has been hosting a high-production concert series, known as Desert Underground, at home. The first event kicked off in July 2022, and Chavez just held "the third really big one" in January, on his 30th birthday.

Even Chavez's mom, Maria Aguirre, is unphased by the home-turned-concert-venue. "When he told me he wanted to put on concerts, I said, 'Ah, well, I can sell aguas frescas and other Mexican food there,'" she said in Spanish. Aguirre described the family as risk-takers with an entrepreneurial spirit.

It doesn't hurt that they're also "pachangueros," or party animals, she added.

"I hadn't really thought about that," Chavez said later, after being told what his mom said. But he soon recalled that when the family lost his childhood home in the eastern Coachella Valley following the 2008 housing crash, he used the emptied house to throw a party for about 300 people: "It was with a couple of local DJs. I had a DJ upstairs and downstairs. I didn't charge."

It wasn't until Weekend 2 of the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival last year, however, that the idea for Desert Underground came to Chavez. As he watched Natanael Cano perform Mexican corridos at the Gobi Tent, he said it occurred to him, "I could do that!"

"I was annoyed. He had this epiphany moment about setting up a stage and throwing concerts in our backyard and that's fine, but I said, 'Why do you have to talk about it now? In the middle of Coachella?'" said Alexandria Torres, who's married to Chavez. Laughing, she added that he wouldn't stop talking about it even once they got home that night.

The festival for everyone

Chavez first attended the Coachella festival in 2009, when he was 16 and got a free wristband through the Indio Teen Center. "Shoutout to the Teen Center," he said with a smile.

He remembers a time in the years that followed when people could slip $50 to someone to sneak them into Coachella. He said now, with increased security measures at the Empire Polo Club, where the event is held annually, that'd be impossible.

Having gone to the festival every year for over a decade, Chavez has seen ticket prices surge, from $299 for the three-day pass to over $500. Add to that a recent "tier system" that charges more for every perk at the event and a ticket could cost over $1,000.

To Chavez, the festival is worth the money. "I think of it as 36 hours of music," he said, "And it creates a memory where, whenever you listen to the music afterwards, you're thinking about when you watched the artist at Coachella."

But he recognizes that many locals can't afford and have never been to the world-renowned event that happens right at home. That is why he offers his.

Chavez said Desert Underground was born from the idea that locals deserve access to live music with great production. Tickets to the concerts are donation-based and Chavez has spent thousands to host them.

His investment shows.

The bigger Desert Underground events offer an approximately 20-foot-by-10-foot stage with all the beaming lights expected at a concert, as well as a backdrop screen that showcases digital art relevant to each performer (colorful swirls, desert-themed animation, a Mexican flag). There's a seating area under a tent with fairy lights for anyone that may need a break from dancing. Typically, Instagrammable setups like neon lights, a sparkling photo booth and a huge storage container spray-painted with the event logo are also available.

Desert Underground has also had three smaller events, which are "more like a regular backyard show with a couple of speakers, so not the crazy stage with the lighting and the fireworks and all of that," Chavez said.

Regardless of the production level of the show, "He's committed," Torres said. Anything that Chavez does, she said, isn't going to be sloppy.

For that reason, Torres has at times questioned the donation-based entrance fee. "Some people are only donating $1, which, for everything you're seeing, c'mon. It's worth more," she said.

After some thought, Chavez concludes, "Some people don't have the money."

Elevating local talent

Desert Underground is also about highlighting local talent. The January show saw Juniors de Cosala, Mind of Amadeus and DJs Suareziiito and LizzCastles from Indio, as well as Los Queridos de la Sierra and headliners Giselle Woo and the Night Owls from other parts of the valley.

Previous performers include Ferny Aguilar, Mills The Gawd, Los Del Erial and Porte Campirano — all from the Coachella Valley, too.

Other local talent comes in the form of the stage designing company DJs de la Raza, the event decor designer Monica Stella Creates and the videographers who document each event.

Chavez said the core team is made up of Antonio Ruvalcaba of the media company AR Studios; drone specialist and graphic designer Ricardo Valdez; videographer Brian Bustamante; stage designer Jose Martinez; Efren Aguilar and Gil Navarro of the audio production company EAC Studios; and Torres, who is the director of operations. ("If you don't tell them what to do, it doesn't get done," she joked.)

Though Chavez denies being popular — "He's humble," Torres said — he credits his time playing football at Indio High School for helping him learn to get organized and network.

In 2018, he started posting videos on YouTube with tips about "How to Coachella." Today, the channel, which shares his name, has over 8,000 subscribers and some of its videos have gotten millions of views.

Chavez created a separate YouTube channel for Desert Underground. It currently has nearly 600 subscribers, with one of its most watched videos garnering 77,000 views.

He is also the host of the Angel Chavez Podcast, found on YouTube, Apple Podcasts and Spotify. It includes chats with different community members in the valley or, under a segment called Cotorreando Talento (Chatting with Talent), he introduces local regional Mexicano performers to listeners.

"I interview them and record their live performances for YouTube, so they can have (material) to promote themselves, to get more gigs or more festivals, whatever," he said.

His content lives on Instagram as well, under the handles @coachellaangel @desertundergroundx @angelchavezpodcast and @cotorreandotalento.

Last year, he directed a short documentary about the launch of Desert Underground. It screened at the 8th Annual Official Latino Film and Arts Festival in Palm Springs. In it, he described the event as part of a "movement" to get people to notice the valley's music scene.

Chavez emphasized that Desert Underground is also meant to elevate Latino and hip-hop acts, especially, because he doesn't feel they get as many opportunities as others, including at the Coachella festival.

It was just in 2022, for instance, that Grupo Firme became the first Mexican banda act to perform at Coachella. This year, Puerto Rican reggaetonero Bad Bunny will become the first Latino to headline since the festival's inception 24 years ago. Last year, pop-star Anitta (from Brazil) and Karol G (from Colombia) were the first Latinas invited to perform on the main stage.

The ultimate goal, Chavez said, would be to get someone who started at Desert Underground to perform at Coachella. "That'd be sick," he said.

Despite juggling a "day job" at the family tile business, Tile760, his online projects and all of the logistics that come with having a concert at home, Chavez said he rarely feels stressed.

"It's helping artists and it's fun," he said of Desert Underground. "I like the chaos. That's where it's at."

The next Desert Underground

Chavez usually attracts an audience for Desert Underground through digital flyers and, of course, making content online. He does not post the venue — his home address — rather asks that people message him on Instagram for details.

At times, he's inspired people from Los Angeles to come down to the desert for the night of live music. Oliver Miranda made the two-hour drive from LA for the latest concert and said: "The show doesn't disappoint. You can see how committed (Chavez) is to his craft."

Still, many others said they found out about Desert Underground through word of mouth in the east end of the valley. "I heard about it from friends," one concert-goer said. "My brother knows Angel," another shared.

"It's a pretty exciting event," said Eliza Castro, a Coachella resident. "The live music is the best part, and the dancing. We need more of this in the valley, I think."

"We're in the City of Festivals! And nobody is batting an eye!" said Indio native and rapper Mind of Amadeus, expressing incredulity that more live music events aren't accessible to locals.

Mind of Amadeus has performed at all of the Desert Underground events so far. He said that has allowed him to gain exposure and book shows in other cities, like Santa Ana and Santa Barbara. In March, he'll head to Phoenix for his first out-of-state performance.

"Angel has given me a lot of pointers on my social media, so that's also helped," he said.

The next Desert Underground on Feb. 24 will also be a "big one," Chavez said, with the same high-level production as just last month. But it will be the first time the event spotlights mainly rock and indie genre artists, as well as a few DJs, to maintain the "mix-genre festival" feel, Chavez said.

The lineup consists of Blue Sun, Brosquitos, Salton City Surf Club, DJ Contraz, Analog Lab, 1:33 AM, TownTroubles and Caña.

Although Chavez has all the pro-tips for "how to Coachella," he said "how to Desert Underground" may not be as complicated. "Just come and see local artists in a high production, like, backyard concert, with a fun, cool vibe," he said.

Eliana Perez covers the eastern Coachella Valley, including the cities of Indio and Coachella. Reach her at eliana.perez@desertsun.com or on Twitter @ElianaPress.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Desert Underground started as an alternative to Coachella. Now it's more