A dance circle formed on Friday at the Tito’s Stage as Chicago musicians celebrated the end of the Chicago Made Music Showcase, despite rain that fell throughout the afternoon at Lollapalooza.
The program, run by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, gives local artists the opportunity to perform for festival audiences and music industry talent buyers.
The second day of Lollapalooza showcased new and emerging artists, giving them the opportunity to perform on a main stage for the first time.
Maserati Hamilton, whose parents live in Chicago, reflected on the power of these spaces for emerging Chicago-based artists, especially Black musicians.
“I think it’s really nice to highlight that music, because realistically that doesn’t happen because they’re Black artists and we don’t tend to do that as a culture,” Hamilton said. “So it’s really exciting to see Chicago being represented. And people think we really are a place of good music culture.”
For Hamilton, Lollapalooza is synonymous with Chicago.
“You know, getting pizza, pubs, getting Harold’s, like that is a part of the festival experience,” Hamilton said. “And if it was any other place, it would lose its magic”.
From Chicago-based stars like Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins, who has a pop-up store on Columbia’s campus at 900 S. Wabash Ave., to the local artists featured on the Tito’s Stage, Lollapalooza’s second day was dedicated to showcasing emerging and veteran Chicago artists.
Lollapalooza has partnered with Chicago Made for the last few years. Artists part of the showcase entered into a contest to be featured in the festival and potentially win a cash prize of $10,000.
Artist Mara Love won the cash prize.
Local band Free Joel, who performed at the Lollapalooza Chicago Made set early in the day, said that being able to perform on the set felt “like a fever dream.”
The rock band consisted of vocalist Noah Martin, guitarist Reid Webber, drummer Kyle Krawczyk and bassist Jillian Burton.
“This was the biggest dream,” Burton said. If they could pick one place to perform, Burton said, “I would pick Lolla.”
Another Chicago Made artist, Corr Kendricks, said that getting to represent the city was “phenomenal,” especially when in the past he wasn’t always able to attend the festival as an audience member.
“The last time I was here, H.E.R. was performing. I’m just looking around like, ‘Man I just need to touch that stage, one time,” Kendricks said.
Local Chicago artists and businesses also got a feature at the Kidzapalooza stage.
Children sat in a drum circle led by local Chicago business Rhythm Revolution and featured groups like The Happiness Club, a hip-hop group made up of Chicago youth, who will be playing on Saturday, August 1.
Festivalgoer Baleigh Arvanites went with her wife, Dana, and their sons, Augie and Cy, who were playing near the stage. The couple said that spaces like these provide a safe space for kids of attendees, while also allowing them to see artists they want.
“It’s nice to be able to bring the kids and have them feel a part of that experience and get to be here as well, because it is such a great place,” Arvanites said.
Kidzpalooza presents itself as an area where the family can enjoy the power of music, no matter the age. Sarah Barreth, whose tradition with her husband is coming to the festival every year, decided to expand the tradition by bringing their 1-year-old.
“He’s almost one, and we come to Lollapalooza every year,” Barreth said. “We live here in the South Loop, so we love exposing him to some music and all these activities.”
Lollapalooza also features a collection of local vendors this year, including Taco Maya, Billy Goat Tavern and a new pizza establishment in the city, Prince Street Pizza, which opened in January 2025.
Dorval Carter, the manager of Prince Street Pizza, grew up in Chicago and would come to Lollapalooza when he was young.
“It feels really good to be back and to be here doing our thing, slinging slices. It feels like we’re on the map now,” Carter said.
While Chicago featured many local artists this year, Lollapalooza also featured several young artists not from Chicago, such as the band Geese, Finn Wolfhard and ivri, who just released her new EP, “evidence of you,” on the second day of Lollapalooza.
Alternative artist ivri, a 24-year-old who currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, quickly blew up after the release of her album, “the star factory,” and although the artist has been working towards her music career, it wasn’t always what she wanted to do.
“I didn’t want to do music. I wanted to be a scientist,” ivri said. “I wanted to be an astrophysicist, but that shit’s so hard.”
Her love of science and sci-fi is a large influence on ivri’s sound, as well as her age. Having grown up on the internet, she thinks people lean towards electronic sounds in the search for a “fresh” noise.
“I think people are looking for a fresh sound, and a lot of the people in the dance scene right now are giving us fresh sounds,” she said. “I’ve seen that dance music is on the come up and rock music is on the come up. Dance and rock are on the charts for the first time in a few years.”
After this album, ivri is considering going back to school for science.
PARTYOF2, a hip-hop duo consisting of Jadagrace and SWIM, both in their 20s and having initially found success as child actors, also took the stage on the second day of the festival, creating an energetic atmosphere of club-like dancing.
“I think on the surface, our music is very fun. But if you really listen to what we’re saying, there’s a lot of meaning behind it,” SWIM said. “And I think that’s really what life is. You can’t get too caught up in overthinking about the things that are happening in the world or your life.”
Jadagrace said that with the Lollapalooza budget, she wanted to raise the bar for their performance.
“We’re always trying to figure out a way to do something that’s never been done before with the budget that we have, so we just have to get super creative and it’s a fun process,” Jadagrace said.
SWIM is always impressed with Chicago’s energy, as audience members jumped and partied as if they were in a nightclub, despite the overcast day and light rain.
“We played Chicago before, and Chicago is usually always some of our biggest shows. So the energy is here for sure,” said SWIM.
Hamilton said that Lollapalooza is best when it features new and old artists alike, as it allows Chicago to represent a larger history of music.
“I think it’s really important because Chicago has really emerged in the last few decades as a major music scene,” Hamilton said. “We need to be showcasing the fresh new act and even some of the seasoned people because you have some really good music from Chicago.”
Additional reporting by María Paula Sanchez
Copy edited by Venus Tapang
