Whethan, Smashing Pumpkins, Charli XCX And Rain As Lollapalooza Resumes

Whethan poses backstage prior to a performance on day three at Lollapalooza. Saturday, August 1, 2026 at Grant Park in Chicago, IL

Photo by Barry Brecheisen

“It’s the biggest thing in the world to me!” said electronic artist, DJ, producer and Chicago native Whethan, who performed Saturday at Lollapalooza for the third time despite rain. “Growing up, I just idolized it. It was like the one bucket list spot,” he said of the destination festival based in his hometown. “If you’re playing at Lolla, they’re such curated and amazing lineups - with all genres. So, to be on it is just truly an honor. And I always want to show up for the city.”

Lollapalooza has steadily built one of the strongest, most recognizable international brands in the festival sphere, with Whethan performing in Chicago in 2017 and 2019 alongside sets at Lollapaloozas Chile, Brazil and Argentina.

While he grew up around the festival with plenty of opportunities to attend as a young fan, arriving in Grant Park for the first time actually took on a much different form, the first of many fond memories on stage at Lollapalooza.

“It’s kind of funny. I had just started getting to that age where I felt like it was OK for me to go to Lollapalooza. But right as my friends Louis the Child were playing it, they brought me for my first time. I was like 15 or 16 years old. So, for my first time, I actually got to go with them and see everything. And then I ended up playing a mini set with them there too. So, my first time was DJing somehow,” said Whethan with a smile, referencing fellow Chicago-based electronic artists Louis the Child during the look back. “I remember in 2019, I got to bring this crazy flower production that we had spent all of this time on and that was such a memorable show. Getting to travel to Brazil, Chile and Argentina on the Lollapalooza circuit was a dream. Getting to see those crowds receive the music the way they did was truly life changing. So, I’m honored to be back. And I’m ready to just show up for the city.”

Following an abbreviated Saturday set on Perry’s stage, one moved about an hour later after heavy rainfall forced an amended schedule, Whethan performed an aftershow at Chicago nightclub Sound-Bar, with Louis the Child taking the stage for one of their own about a half mile west on Ontario Street at Tao, as Lollapalooza dominates weekend nightlife across the city even after hours.

Rainfall actually began late Friday during concurrent headlining Lollapalooza appearances by pop star Charli XCX and 90s alternative rockers, and Chicagoland natives, Smashing Pumpkins.

By midday Saturday, nearly four inches of rain impacted some parts of the Chicagoland area, with Grant Park itself under water as the day began. Doors were pushed a few hours ahead as crews worked to drain the field and prepare it as safely as possible for about 100,000 concertgoers. While it was muddy, that the Saturday performance slate happened at all seems like a minor miracle. Updates went out with actual notice via the Festiverse app, socials and Lollapalooza website, with clarity delivered despite the turbulent weather.

Friday afternoon, prior to the rain, Canadian indie rockers Mother Mother offered up a one hour set on the Tito’s Handmade Vodka stage at Grant Park’s Petrillo Music Shell, part of a quasi-rock resurgence shaping the 2026 Lollapalooza lineup. Thursday night, the group tore through a raucous aftershow set on stage at Chicago’s Park West.

“It was the most fun, magical gig we’ve had in years honestly,” said singer, songwriter and guitarist Ryan Guldemond. “I think because it was late. So, you’re out of your head. And you’re tired. So, you can’t overthink it. It was a small, sparse club show. But the 200 or 300 people that were there were like superfans. So, it felt like a secret handshake,” he said, summing up the evening with a look ahead to the festival itself. “Smashing Pumpkins should be cool. Pretty legendary.”

Prior to its arrival in Chicago as a destination festival in 2005, Lollapalooza toured the country as a tastemaking showcase for alternative music and more in the 1990s, with Smashing Pumpkins headlining the fourth installment in 1994.

While Corgan joined 90s colleagues Porno For Pyros on stage in 2022, Friday night in Chicago marked the first Smashing Pumpkins performance on a Lollapalooza stage in 32 years.

“Are you with us tonight?” asked frontman Billy Corgan rhetorically of the assembled hometown crowd early in the set, his mic finally kicking in following apparent issues during opener “1979.”

“Bullet With Butterfly Wings” followed, with the Pumpkins delivering a potent look back at the Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness album to start the set. That album, now diamond certified, selling in excess of 10 million copies in America alone since its release nearly 31 years ago, proved a powerful start to a star-studded set which boasted guest appearances by rocker YUNGBLD, pop star Olivia Rodrigo and former Pumpkins/Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur.

Corgan strapped on an acoustic guitar for “Disarm” as YUNGBLD joined for a second from 1993’s Siamese Dream album in standout deepcut “Luna.”

“Chicago. The great state of Illinois…” mused guitarist James Iha, summing up the experience in trademark deadpan fashion. “This is awesome.”

While Smashing Pumpkins rose to prominence at the height of a major label system in a much different music industry era prior to the advent of online streaming or social media, artists today are forced to take a wholly different, far more hands on approach to concepts like branding and the business side.

For California singer songwriter Claire Rosinkranz, 22, who performed her latest single “Rocket” this weekend on stage at Lollapalooza, the key lies in delegation to a carefully-curated, handpicked team which helps her foster the idea of authenticity.

“I was just so young. And it’s really easy to get swallowed up in that system,” noted Rosinkranz both astutely and accurately. “Honestly, I have worked with people where I didn’t even really know what they did. So, I have been very intentional about rebuilding a team that I have a really good relationship with. People that I know I can go to and what I’m going to them for,” she explained. “I really appreciate being able to have any idea, feeling or vision and knowing exactly the person for each thing to be able to execute it. So, I think having people that you actually would like to exist with and create with and be friends with is really important, at least for me. And, through that, you have the ability to have honesty, which is essential to be able to execute anything authentic.”

ForbesSB19, Sombr, Wet Leg And Empire Of The Sun Kick Off Lollapalooza 2026By Jim Ryan

After singers/actors TJOnline and Rhea left alternative hip-hop outfit grouptherapy, PARTYOF2 was born, with the duo performing Friday afternoon in Chicago.

“We played the set. And it was incredible. We really leveled up our performance,” said TJOnline after. “We had a lot more production this time around and set design. We even got to shoot some of our own set. We had a camera on stage. And we were just having fun. It was a big party,” added Rhea. “We also got introduced and had skits by DJ Drama. So, that was a really big moment for us,” said TJOnline.

2026 has proven to be a whirlwind year for the group. Following the rebrand, the duo released their debut album Amerika’s Next Top Party! last October. Just eight months later, PARTYOF2 headlined an intimate Friday night after party at Schubas following a main stage Lollapalooza performance. It’s the type of leap that requires an awful lot of work, with the duo continually building a fervent following in a short time.

“I ran into a fan today. And they said that the last time they saw us was in 2021 - when we were still grouptherapy - at a really, really small venue in New York called the Berlin that holds like 50 people. And they were just so happy to see us at this stage,” TJOnline explained of the encounter. “And, sometimes, when you meet people like that, it really reminds you of how far you’ve come. We’ve been so focused on the work and just being the best at what we do that today was a moment for us to really look up and be like, ‘Wow. We’ve done a lot in this short amount of time,’” he said.

“It’s been overwhelming and surreal and very humbling. We didn’t expect to really get where we are right now this quickly,” said Rhea. “We were willing to really put in the years with the rebrand. So, it’s amazing to be playing the main stage at Lollapalooza one year into PARTYOF2. It’s a blessing.

Forming in California in 2015, indie rockers Momma were a highlight on a rainy Lolla Saturday in the Windy City.

The group’s fourth album Welcome to my Blue Sky was released in the spring of 2025, one which finds the group further honing their melodic, hooky songwriting. On stage Saturday in Grant Park, the quartet conjured up images of Chicago-born 90s rockers Veruca Salt, dropping crunchy guitar hooks throughout their 45 minutes at Petrillo.

“Ohio all the Time” came halfway through one of Saturday’s most rewarding sets, with the ethereal intro to “I Want You (Fever)” providing the perfect musical accompaniment on a misty Saturday afternoon.

A grungy but catchy guitar lick kicked off “Motorbike” with Momma soon wrapping up their first Lollapalooza set via the soothing sounds of “Speeding 72.”

“Thank you so much!” said Etta Friedman, taking stock of a strong Lollapalooza crowd despite the weather. “So much fun. This is so exciting!”