Photo Credit: (Left) Joseph Okpako/WireImage, (Middle) Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy, (Right) Scott Legato/Getty Images

Lollapalooza has historically been known as an annual Chicago rock festival since its beginning as a farewell tour for the festival’s founder, Perry Farrell’s group, Jane’s Addiction. Although many rock artists have graced its stage, Lollapalooza has grown to encompass so much more than the one genre. With different iterations in cities all over the world, the festival has also continuously fostered an incredibly diverse group of performers. This year’s line up expresses this diversity as it includes female rapper Megan Thee Stallion, who just recently replaced rapper Tyler, the Creator; K-Pop (Korean pop) group Stray Kids; R&B artist SZA; classical and jazz artist Laufey, who will be performing with the Chicago Philharmonic; Japanese duo Yoasobi; and South African artist Tyla, just to name a few.

Originally a touring festival with different shows across the United States, Lollapalooza has opted to instead stay in Chicago every year while growing to house festivals in Germany, India, Brazil, and France, among other countries. The artists who have headlined these events across the world are also not limited to just one festival as the 4 time Billboard 200 chart topping K-pop group, Stray Kids, is headlining this year at Lollapalooza Chicago, after having also headlined the France festival last year in 2023.

As the festival broadened to incorporate different variations across the world, it has also been the subject of international records. In 2019, Colombian artist J Balvin became the first Latino artist to headline the event. With viral hits like “Mi Gente” and having shared another festival’s stage with Beyonce in 2018, J Balvin has reached audiences across the globe and added to the diversity of Lollapalooza’s lineup. Another international record was set in 2022 when South Korean artist and BTS member J-Hope became the first South Korean artist to headline a main stage at an American music festival, performing for a crowd of over 100,000 people (Michael Calcagno and Starr Bowenbank for Billboard).

With Lollapalooza’s incorporation of different artists, cultures, and genres, it is not strange that its roots have been buried deep in variety since its establishment in 1991. The original lineup for the very first show expressed this variety as it included founder Perry Farrell’s alternative rock band Jane’s Addiction, Hip-Hop rapper Ice-T and his metal group Body Count, female led rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, and the all black rock group Living Colour, among others. From this, the festival expanded to include countless other acts like the Wu-Tang Clan in 1996 to The Beatles’ very own Paul McCartney in 2015.

Now in 2024, Lollapalooza is continuing to express its diversity with the new addition of female rapper Megan Thee Stallion. Replacing Tyler, the Creator who is unable to perform, Megan is no stranger to Lollapalooza and has performed at the festival in Chicago, 2021 and in France, 2022. The Texas native also comes to Lollapalooza with many accolades as she has topped the highly coveted spot of #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 3 times. The female rapper takes the world by storm with her captivating personality and non-negotiable confidence, doing so by expressing herself freely with self-written raps and creative music videos.

As a momma’s girl, Megan became interested in music through watching her mother rap while accompanying her in the recording studio. As she respected her mother’s wishes for her to not pursue rap until she received a college degree, Megan released hit after hit while studying and graduating from HBCU Texas Southern University in 2021. While rapping to thousands of fans all over, the female rapper has expressed her opinion on many serious issues. One method of expression was through an Op-ed for the New York Times, describing  the many issues that Black women face. Another method that Megan used to talk about serious issues was through her song, “Cobra,” where she describes her battle with mental health while expressing her resilience to keep on going. With so many colors and hues that paint the picture of who Megan Thee Stallion is, as she performs at Lollapalooza this year, those colors are bound to paint her audience with its beauty.

Another artist bound to make big waves at Lollapalooza this year in 2024 is VCHA. The American girl group that was formed in South Korea consists of a melting pot of cultures, featuring “members ranging from white and Latino to Black, Korean, Vietnamese and…Hmong descent.” (Heaven Xiong for The Campus Citizen). The girls may have only debuted less than a year ago however, they are bringing back the iconic American girl group era of the 2000s with their music reminiscent of the ‘00s Teen Movie and TV Show soundtracks. Due to Lollapalooza providing the group with the opportunity to be introduced to a large and diverse audience, their performance at the festival this year will surely create more fans and thus, their popularity will continue to grow.

Since its beginning, Lollapalooza has been a festival for all. With so many acts from all over the world and countless fans from all walks of life, there will definitely be something for everyone. As many diverse artists flood the Lollapalooza stage this year, attendees will have the chance to see themselves represented. It is that representation and expression of diversity that truly gives Lollapalooza its charm.