This year’s Lollapalooza lineup consists of several woman-led artists and bands, as well as many queer-identifying performers. From large household names like Lana del Rey to emerging artists like Hemlocke Springs, Lollapalooza offers artists from all genres and backgrounds.
Isabel LaRosa performed at the BMI stage on day one and again at the Toyota Music Den on day two. She said it was “really cool” to be one of many women performing at the festival.
Festivalgoer Vera Pantazis, 15, from St. Louis said she was excited to be surrounded by other women and female artists at Lollapalooza this year.
“I love it so much. I also love [that] female artists, I feel like, generally draw a more female crowd so I feel really safe; it’s really great to be surrounded by a bunch of girls, you know — ‘girls support girls,’” Pantazis said.
LaRosa, at just 18 years old, is one of a few younger artists to play Lollapalooza.
“I think it’s really cool because I just feel like we’re on the same kind of playing field almost, and it’s really cool to meet kids my age or younger than me. I think it makes me feel more connected to them,” LaRosa said.
She said her next goal is to “have a number one,” and attributes her musical self-discovery to her family and community.
“It was just finding the people – like my community – that really helped me be excited and be like, ‘Oh, you can be edgy and cool and it’s not just like pop or jazz,’” LaRosa said.
Pop artist Tyler Christian opened day two of the music festival at the Bacardi stage with an early afternoon set. Christian released their debut EP, “Reasons,” this past spring.
The title for the EP came from the name of the recording software they used to record the demos on. Christian said they first started experimenting with songwriting when working on a show at Berklee College of Music, their alma-mater.
“I just started trying to figure out how to write and how I wanted to be perceived. And I thankfully was also going through boy issues at the time and so that kind-of helped me like, ‘Oh, I can use this and use that’ and then at some point I blinked and I’m here in Chicago,” Christian said.
They said their next project, which they are working on now, will continue after they move to Los Angeles next month.
“The goal is to be out there, because the one thing I’ll give myself is I have to be in LA, rain or shine, because I think the amount of opportunity and accessibility there is unprecedented,” Christian said.
Saturday, day three of Lollapalooza, will include sets by Suki Waterhouse, The Revivalists and headliners The Garden, Odesza, and Tomorrow X Together.
