Coachella: DJ Michael Bibi on first show since cancer diagnosis
- Published
For Michael Bibi, this weekend's Coachella was a "range of mixed emotions" as he played his first show since getting cancer treatment.
The DJ was diagnosed with a rare form of brain and spinal cancer last summer, forcing him to cancel all his upcoming gigs.
He played a surprise set in Ibiza during a break in treatment, and in December, he announced he was in remission.
Now, almost a year since diagnosis, he's properly returned to the decks, with a big comeback set headlining a new stage at the Californian festival.
Before his set, he tweeted: "One year ago I was given a 30% chance of survival, today I'm packing to perform at Coachella... Never give up on your hopes or dreams."
Speaking after his performance, Michael tells BBC Newsbeat: "It was emotional, it was intense - there was happiness, there was some sadness.
"And there was just a huge range of emotions coming through."
Not only does Michael say it's the longest distance he's travelled since treatment, but that the weekend was a chance to be among crowds, as he had to isolate during treatment.
"That was a big step in itself, just getting on a plane and coming to the US.
"And then adding on top of that, doing my first show and coming to a festival, it was a lot," he says.
"But it actually gives you a sense of purpose again, moving and coming back out into reality and seeing people.
"Because I've been kind of sheltering a lot, because of the treatments, I've had to kind of isolate myself.
"So getting back out into the world and connecting with human beings is a good feeling."
But Michael says his highlight of the event wasn't being back on the stage - it was taking his mum to her first festival.
"The highlight of my weekend was walking around the festival with my mum, just looking at the excitement in her eyes and reminding me of how excited I was the first time I ever went," he says.
"And just being with my loved ones and family and in the middle of all of the chaos."
Aside from attending her first festival, mum was also there to show support.
"It's really been very comforting for me having her here because I've been quite anxious about the whole thing," Michael adds.
"Just stepping out from my little sheltered house in London back out into the real world."
While the DJ says he is now "physically well", he says he's still coming to terms with what he's been through "day by day".
"It's just a kind of a mental processing," he says, "just kind of mentally catching up on everything that I've been through. Because I think when you get into a really intense situation, you kind of go into fight or flight mode.
"And you just have to get through that moment and period of time and you're not really processing everything that's happening to you."
Another DJ set over the weekend also caused headlines, when Grimes was left screaming in frustration due to technical difficulties.
Michael, like most DJs, can sympathise with things going wrong.
"Everyone's been in bad situations when they're DJing," he says. "I've been in situations where everything stops working or the left deck doesn't work and the right deck just doesn't do what you want to do.
"You just have to try and adapt and do the best you can with a bad situation, which is horrible when it does happen."
Michael is on doctor's orders to rest, so won't be playing Coachella's second weekend, but he's looking forward to playing his homecoming gig at London's Finsbury Park in July.
"It's going to be outdoors, daytime, and all my family and friends are going to be there," he says.
"It's kind of where I started and where I learned the trade and everything - so it's going to be full-circle."
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