Review: Slayyyter finds her best Worst self at Lollapalooza

From a Midwest Princess to Midwest Pleb, Lollapalooza has really cornered the market on catching regional hype stars in the moment, starting with Chappell Roan in 2024 and, this year, Slayyyter.

In a repeat last-minute pivot this week, organizers smartly promoted the electro pop artist — alter ego of St. Louis native Catherine Grace Garner — to a main stage in anticipation of the large draw. A majority of the park did mosey over, proudly donning pairs of bunny ears and trucker caps, both familiar talismans in Slayyyter’s diabolical music videos as of late. Garner had her own pick, a bedazzled cap that spelled out Slayyyterpalooza. No truer words ever spoken.

“I always wanted to play Lollapalooza, and I’m so happy we’re doing this today y’all,” she remarked about making her festival debut. “I want to thank you for coming to my set. Everything happening with me lately is so crazy, and you all make me feel like I’m such a celebrity. It’s like I’m actually kind of famous,” she added.

Slayyyter performs on the Bud Light stage on Day 2 of Lollapalooza in Grant Park, Friday, July 31, 2026.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

The speech was a setup for one of her newer songs, “I’m Actually Kind of Famous,” but it has quickly turned prophetic.

Slayyyter has been having a hell of a summer promoting her new album “Wor$t Girl in America.” It’s dominated “best of lists,” streaming services and festival circuits. It’s also her first album ever to pop up in top spots on Billboard charts after years of hustling to make it with a self-titled mixtape in 2019, a proper debut album “Troubled Paradise” in 2021 and 2023’s “Starf---er.” There was nothing amiss with any of the records — each of them cast a net of Y2k pop girlie gold; one track, “Daddy AF,” landed in the Oscar-winning “Anora.” But the output just wasn’t different enough from the crowded pop milieu to break out.

With “Wor$t Girl,” Garner has found her best self. A concept album at heart, it’s a scrapbook of small-town blues set to an apocalyptic soundtrack of dark noise. And in interpreting it for the stage, Slayyyter completely slayed.

Fans dance and cheer as Slayyyter performs on the Bud Light stage on Day 2 of Lollapalooza in Grant Park, Friday, July 31, 2026.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

Garner rose to the occasion visually with a backdrop that featured a dilapidated house, blood-smeared T-shirts hung on clothing lines and crosses leaned against the walls. In any other setting, the stage design could have been mistaken for a “House of 1000 Corpses” terror. She, too, came perfectly coiffed and dressed in a microflannel, heeled Wellies boots and hot shorts adorned with dangling fishing bait. Her band members matched the trashy aesthetic.

Having the live band was an absolute game changer: The chugging bass lines, brutal drumbeats and furious guitar tones turned club hits into an industrial metal breakdown on songs like “Old Technology” and “Crank.” The crowd went absolutely berserk for the latter, slam dancing and singing along to lyrics about keeping fingers on triggers.

Garner herself was headbanging, thrashing and growling on some tracks like she’d gone feral in the woods. By the end, she slowed things down when live debuting “Brand New Chanel$” that dropped yesterday. Whereas the rest of her material felt like nightmare fuel, this new one was all sprinkles and rainbows. It’s part of an upcoming album companion project, and it was effective. Garner has always been a pro at showing multiple sides. But, pray that she’ll keep doing her Worst, too.

Slayyyter performs on the Bud Light stage on Day 2 of Lollapalooza in Grant Park, Friday, July 31, 2026.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

For more on Lollapalooza:

Lollapalooza 2026 kicks off in Grant Park — Day 1, what to know

Photos: Lorde, John Summit headline Lollapalooza Day 1

Ahead of Lollapalooza performance, Charli xcx meets fans for a chat at Reckless Records

Review: Sombr , with margarita in hand, struts into Lollapalooza like he owns the place

Elizabeth Nichols dropped out of law school to pursue her music career after viral hits. Can she make the leap to mainstream success?

Photos: What we saw at Lollapalooza Day 2

Review: Lorde opens woman-forward Lollapalooza with a powerful set and Charli xcx duet

Heavy rain is expected at Lollapalooza. Here’s what to know.

Indexed and credited by AIPROPX. Originating outlet: Chicago Sun-Times. Open at source →