The sweat is just drying from this weekend’s blow-out 2022 edition of Lollapalooza on the lakefront in Chicago, which means that it’s already time to start gearing up for next summer. As fans were straggling home following this year’s blowout featuring Metallica, Lil Baby, Dua Lipa, Machine Gun Kelly, J. Cole, Big Sean, Kygo, Green Day, Dua Lipa, Charlie XCX and the first solo show by BTS’ J-Hope, organizers revealed on Monday morning (Aug. 1) that they will return for more around the same time next year, and for many years to come.
Lollapalooza will be back in Chicago’s Grant Park from Aug. 3-6 in 2023 with hotel packages already available for early planners out there; the Chicago Tribune also reported that on Sunday that Mayor Lori Lightfoot confirmed that organizers had agreed to terms with the city that will keep the fest in Chicago for another decade.
This year’s Lolla had something for everyone, including Metallica tricking out their Thursday night headlining set with a tribute to Stranger Things‘ “Master of Puppets”-loving Eddie Munson during a performance of their beloved 1986 thrash metal classic.
After running through fan favorites including “Enter Sandman,” “Nothing Else Matters” and a cover of AC/DC’s “It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘N’ Roll),” Metallica closed out the show with the song that’s currently in the midst of a streaming renaissance thanks to its inclusion in the finale episode of Stranger Things‘ fourth season. Staged in front of a big screen playing the show’s standout scene — which features Joseph Quinn’s metalhead character epically shredding “Master of Puppets” on his electric guitar as a means of distracting killer bats in the Upside Down — the band synchronized their performance of the song with Eddie’s.
In addition, drill rapper Lil Durk is on the mend after having an onstage mishap in which he was hit in the face with some pyro during his Saturday evening set. “Due to the incident that happened at Lollapalooza in Chicago on stage, I’ma take a break & focus on my health,” Lil Durk captioned a post on Instagram, which showed a photo of the hip-hop artist in a hospital room wearing a mask and a large patch covering his right eye.
And, if BTS’ J-Hope was nervous about his first-ever solo set outside the comfort of the K-pop supergroup’s orbit he didn’t seem to show it when he became the first South Korean artist to headline a major U.S. festival. As the group is in the midst of a break while its 7 members explore solo work, J-Hope wowed the 100,000 crowd with high-energy performances of songs from his new Jack in the Box album, including “More,” “HANGSANG” and “P.O.P. (Peace of Piece),” as well as a tropical version of the BTS smash “Dynamite” and a run through his Becky G collab “Chicken Noodle Soup,” according to NME.
Swaggering across the stage in a loose black shirt and matching pants, Hope playfully introduced himself to the audience by noting that he’s a member of BTS, “but you can call me J,” the rapper smiled as the crowd exploded in cheers during a set that melded hip-hop with pop, rock and some smoothed-out R&B. “You guys are f—ing crazy,” he said, thanking ARMY for showing up. “A lot of you may be seeing me for the first time today…. it’s great to be here.”
Check out the teaser video for the 2023 Lollapalooza below.
