RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Hollywood & Entertainment Whethan, Smashing Pumpkins, Charli XCX And Rain As Lollapalooza Resumes By Jim Ryan ,
Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about the business of music Follow Author Aug 02, 2026, 05:00pm EDT --:-- / --:-- This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . Summary Lollapalooza 2026 navigated heavy rainfall, delaying Saturday's schedule, yet artists delivered memorable sets. Chicago native Whethan, a three-time performer, expressed his deep connection to the festival, recalling his unique first Lolla experience DJing at a young age. Smashing Pumpkins made a triumphant return after 32 years, headlining Friday with guest appearances from YUNGBLD and Olivia Rodrigo. Canadian rockers Mother Mother also performed, while Claire Rosinkranz highlighted the importance of authentic team building in the modern music industry. Duo PARTYOF2, formerly grouptherapy, celebrated their rapid ascent, headlining an afterparty after a main stage performance. Indie rockers Momma also braved the rain on Saturday, delivering a strong set.
“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.
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 tak...
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