Founded in 2007 by Lauren McClusky, Nelarusky holds an annual benefit at the famous Chicago venue Metro to raise money and awareness for the Special Olympics. This year marks their 13th year holding this benefit concert that has become an official Lollapalooza after show, and to date they have raised over $300,000. This year’s benefit saw Kali Uchis, Iris Temple, and Tatiana Hazel come together on Tuesday, July 30th, 2019, to help add to Nelarusky’s impressive donation total.
Tatiana Hazel started the night off with a band, dominating the stage almost immediately. Chants of “I love you, Tati” could be heard from the crowd. Her energy lit up the room, which was apparent due the crowds non-stop dancing. This set was bittersweet for Hazel, as she announced during the last half of her set that she is moving to California soon, so this was her last show in Chicago as a Chicago resident. She powered through the rest of her set and the crowd was left amped up for the next performance.
A quick break between sets was filled with a brief announcement from Nelarusky thanking the crowd for being there and highlighting the accomplishments of athlete Barbara Kozdron, aka Barbie. Barbie’s speech was met with instant applause as she detailed her favorite sports to compete in and informed everyone that she has won over 600 gold medals in figure skating, as well as bench pressing 185 pounds. The crowd was very supportive.
Iris Temple was up next. Their jazzy and soulful sound mixed with their hard-hitting lyrics about anxiety, depression, and falling out of love had the crowd in their feelings. The music fit very well for their topics, and the musicality of the musicians was nothing short of amazing. Their harmonies and melodies meshed very well together.
Next up was another announcement from Nelarusky. They presented the Special Olympics with a large check for $30,000. Everyone was very grateful, and you could feel the love in the room.
Finally, the moment everyone was waiting for: Kali Uchis. She commanded the audience the moment she walked on the stage with her high energy and sultry dance moves. Her seductive voice entranced the crowd as she belted through hit after hit, including a mystifying rendition of “Creep” by Radiohead. Coming off a large tour with Jorja Smith, Uchis noted that it had been awhile since she had played such an intimate show, and you could just feel the admiration between her and the crowd. The crowd matched her unspoken request for love with tons of screaming and adoration as they danced through the night.
TATIANA HAZEL
IRIS TEMPLE
KALI UCHIS
KALI UCHIS SETLIST
Loner
Dead 2 Me
Just A Stranger
Teeth In My Neck
Pobre Diabla
Beautiful
Creep
Never Be Yours
Rush
Ridin Round
Tyrant
Nuestro Planeta
War
Coming Home
After The Storm
