3:56PM: I’m making a list of Lollapalooza wardrobe trends while waiting for Smino. So far I have: body and facial glitter, fish nets, swimsuits, fanny packs, neon, thongs. I look down at my breathable linen pants and sensible shoes and…I’m definitely not on trend.
4:15PM: Smino brought props…in the form of a pink Pontiac named “Pepto.” Awesome. His silky smooth vocals soar, even when he’s rapping.
4:26PM: I stop at the Toyota Music Den and decide that Liily needs a bigger stage. The LA-based alternative band is using every square inch of space to thrash around.
5:10PM: I find myself over at the BMI Stage, mainly because I haven’t been to it yet. It’s a hidden gem of a stage—nicely shaded by trees. Witt Lowry is performing a cappella because of sound issues. The crowd helps him out.
6:32PM: So. Many. Instagram. Stories. Endless and everywhere. We need to stop watching everything through our phones.
6:41PM: Airplane banner ads have been flying above Grant Park all weekend, but I just eyed the best one: “We’re Rolling Too” courtesy of dough.com. Well played—and a brief distraction from AJR’s pretty brutal set on the Tito’s Stage.
7:11PM: “This is a fucking sexy ass town! You know that, right?” Jack Black of Tenacious D asks to claps and laughter. They’re working their way through their discography with select highlights from each album. They begin with their most recent, “Post-Apocalypto,” and work their way back to the most beloved, their eponymous 2001 debut.
7:18PM: Jack Black is feeling like dancing. So is Kyle Gass. He requests a sax and a kids’ Fisher Price sax is retrieved. He “plays” it, the band joins in, and—you guessed it—a dance party ensues.
7:48PM: Easily the biggest crowd of the weekend has assembled for Lil Wayne. Perhaps he should be a headliner?
8:43PM: The Twenty Øne Piløts crowd is ready and waiting in the band’s signature yellow.
9:00PM: This is the second car I’ve seen as a prop today, but this one is on fire and Tyler Joseph is atop it. Josh Dun thumps on the drums and the crowd goes wild.
9:07PM: Cheers to RL Grime: the Perry’s Stage sounds the best it has all weekend.
9:30PM: Congrats to J Balvin for being the first Latino Lolla headliner ever. It’s a celebration at the Bud Light Stage!
SMINO
LIILY
WITT LOWRY
JADE BIRD
TENACIOUS D
LIL WAYNE
TWENTY ONE PILOTS
LOLLAPALOOZA 2019, SATURDAY, AUGUST 3