Lollapalooza 2022 was one of the dopest I’ve experienced in a long time. My first time attending my local megafest of megafests since the pandemic went a lot better than I had originally expected after learning that this year’s lineup was switching things up by prioritizing fresher talent all across the board and only booking two major legacy artists.
With so many artists that are still in the beginning years of their careers and others whose stardom is more contemporary, the festival’s lineup strategy worked so well for a second year in a row by injecting a different kind of energy that is bringing magic back to Lolla. The fest was sold-out at least by Saturday morning (please note that I didn’t check on Friday), a clear indication that people knew they needed to be part of the good times that were being witnessed at Grant Park that last July weekend.
Check out our list of the Top 12 Artists at Lollapalooza 2022 below.
Audrey Nuna
The Jersey artist did a dope job playing on Sunday afternoon. Those earlier set times can sometimes be rougher for drawing a crowd but that wasn’t an issue for Nuna, whose fans came out in great numbers to support. Audrey Nuna’s swagger and catchy tunes made her performances so entertaining and I really dug the way she commanded the crowd to get them riled up and moving for songs like “Dollah Bills” and “Honeypot.”
Cochise
The Florida rapper was another artist that proved he deserved to play the T-Mobile stage. The hits were hit-ting and the moshing was one of the biggest I’d seen at that point.
De’Wayne
This Houston Rocker was my biggest surprise of this year’s festival, and much like how all fest surprises hit me, I was very happy to have this kind of introduction. I was only aware of De’Wayne for some of his bigger songs and noteworthy collaborations, so I hardly had an idea of how much I’d be moved by his Lolla performance. As he discussed we us in our interview with him later that day, De’Wayne was humbled by the opportunity but he also knew he had to give it his all in his opening set at the T-Mobile stage (the biggest of the fest), on the closing day of the fest, which was being streamed on Hulu, and (technically) opening for one of his favorite groups, Green Day.
Dua Lipa
The British singer looked inspired on Friday night of Lolla and she put on a headline performance worthy of the tens of thousands of people that came out to see her. Drawing from her Future Nostalgia Tour that rolled into town earlier this year, Dua Lipa’s set was a celebration of her latest album paired with fun and flirty choreography, made that much more impossible to
Green Day
When I first saw Green Day were on the lineup I knew that this was going to be a good time, but what I wasn’t expecting was to see these old Pop-Punkers transform into multi-generational Rock stars. Along with playing their classics they also threw in covers of Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man,” KISS’ “Rock and Roll All Nite” and the ultimate G-rated party song, The Isley Brothers’ “Shout.” Billie Joe Armstrong and the boys looked like they were having a blast just playing Rock & Roll and partying, and everyone gave that energy right back.
Hinds
This Spanish outfit had to miss last year’s edition of the festival due to some travel issues, but they came up with a plan to make up for lost time. The ladies from Madrid rocked out, fittingly played a cover of The Clash’s “Spanish Bombs,” and even brought up a fan to play bass on 2016’s “Garden.” Worth the wait!
IDLES
This was hands down my favorite set of the entire festival. They’ve got a whole lotta attitude, fiery songs, and Joe Talbot’s charisma on the mic is unmatched.
The Marías
These Indie stars are now a massive sensation. The Tito’s stage brought together so many people (much of those being Latin on top of that) to hear those silky vocals and vibe out.
Metallica
They were simply incredible. The classics made it onto the setlist as everyone would’ve expected but the old metalheads also messed around by playing a St. Anger tune for their own enjoyment after ignoring fans’ response to not play anything from that record. The energy that was injected into the crowd that showed up thanks to a featured inclusion
Peter Cottontale
Peter took us to church! Gospel music getting that kind of placement at Lolla was wild enough, but then it turned into a whole new experience once he started bringing out the guests. Joey Purp and Chance the Rapper were among the old SaveMoney crew members that were brought out, making this a particularly special moment for anyone that saw this group grow up throughout the years.
Tinashe
The R&B singer is one of the best in her genre, and this Lolla appearance showed it. The crowd was massive and they were electric. Tinashe was sanging sanging and her down moved always sparked “woos” and “ahhs.”
Wet Leg
The Isle of Man group’s first American festival was a fun one. You can tell they’re still trying to figure out how to even exist onstage at a place like this one, but the music sounds just as punchy and sassy as we’d hoped for. Definitely a Lollapawinner.
