All eyes in the music world are on Chicago this weekend, as Grant Park plays host to another year of Lollapalooza . With the weather looking uncertain for the festival’s later days, thousands flocked to the Chicago Riverwalk on a sun-kissed Thursday afternoon (July 30) to kick off Lolla.
Performances began around noon CT across nine different stages and wrapped up with Lorde making her return to the Lolla stage for the first time since 2017 with Chicago’s own John Summit co-headlining on opposite ends of the park.
The rest of the day saw performances from Filipino boy band SB19, who made history as the first P-pop group to perform at Lolla, as well as Bella Kay, Blood Orange, Little Simz, Boys Noize, Audrey Hobert, Sombr, 5 Seconds of Summer and Wet Leg.
A jam-packed weekend remains on tap, with anticipated headlining sets from Charli xcx , who made a guest appearance during Lorde’s performance, as well as Olivia Dean , Tate McRae , The xx, Smashing Pumpkins and Jennie.
There was chatter on the festival grounds from fans speculating that A-listers Olivia Rodrigo , who was allegedly spotted at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport, and Ariana Grande could be popping up. Ari’s Eternal Sunshine Tour comes to Chi-Town on Aug. 3.
Lollapalooza has remained one of the premier U.S. festivals by mixing a range of superstars with upstarts and legacy acts spanning different generations. 2025’s Lolla saw headlining performances from Olivia Rodrigo, Tyler, the Creator, Sabrina Carpenter, A$AP Rocky and Doechii.
Thanks to the good folks at Dunkin’, Billboard is on the ground for Lollapalooza 2026. Here are the best moments from the festival so far. ( This list will be updated daily .)
Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” has quite the lore with 5 Seconds of Summer fans. The Australian pop-rock band covered the 2010 Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit during performances like Summertime Ball in 2014, and at a SiriusXM visit that same year, leading to the cover holding a special place in fans’ hearts. A decade later, 5SOS revived the rockified cover of the glitzy turbo-pop anthem, which supplied a heavy dose of nostalgia to festivalgoers.