Vocalo’s Lollapalooza 2023 Preview

Written by Morgan Ciocca on August 2, 2023

Kendrick Lamar, Karol G, Lana Del Rey and The 1975 are just a few of this year’s Lollapalooza headliners. Check out some of our recommendations to catch at the festival this August.

Organizers of Lollapalooza rolled out this year’s highly-anticipated lineup for the festival, spanning August 3 through 6 at Chicago’s Grant Park. The long list of performers leads with Kendrick Lamar, plus a headlining set from reggaeton artist Karol G. Other headliners this year are Billie Eilish, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Odesza, Lana Del Rey, The 1975 and Tomorrow x Together.

Read below to check out our recommendations of artists to catch while you’re at the festival…

Kendrick Lamar, first and foremost, is the headliner to watch. Returning to the scene after a five-year hiatus with Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers in May, Kendrick embarked on international “The Big Steppers Tour” the next month, stopping at the United Center on August 19. The tour is set to conclude in August 2023, following several festival performances including Lollapalooza.

Colombian reggaeton artist Karol G is also headlining this year, signifying the rise of Latin and reggaeton music into the U.S. mainstream. Her latest release, a post-breakup album titled MAÑANA SERÁ BONITO, was described by Rolling Stone as “her best music yet.”

Trending artist and producer Fred Again is also set to perform, stepping into the spotlight with his iconic boiler room sets — which he’s currently taking on the road in support of his latest release Actual Life 3.

Last month A Boogie Wit da Hoodie headlined the Aragon Ballroom on his “Me Vs. Myself” tour, in support of his 2022 album of the same name.

JID is playing a sold-out show for his dual “Luv Is 4Ever” tour with Smino on March 21 at the Aragon Ballroom, supporting his acclaimed 2022 album The Forever Story.

Pusha T and Lil Yachty are also set to deliver standout performances at the festival.

Nigerian singer-songwriter Tems is in constant rotation on Vocalo’s airwaves. She was one of the artists featured on the soundtrack for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever with track “No Woman No Cry,” and has collaborated with artists including Burna Boy, Wizkid (on the smash 2020 hit “Essence”), Drake, Future and Brent Faiyaz.

Jessie Reyez stopped in Chicago in the fall to play two sold-out shows at the House of Blues in support of 2022’s YESSIE. She virtually sat down with Vocalo afternoons host Nudia Hernandez to talk about the tour and her new album.

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Joey Bada$$ collaborated with Chance the Rapper in 2022 on a standout multidisciplinary single “The Highs and The Lows,” which is spinning frequently on our airwaves.

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San Diego trio Thee Sacred Souls takes notes from vintage soul to deliver their nostalgic sound, as exemplified by their most popular single “Can I Call You Rose?”

Sudan Archives released her highly-anticipated album Natural Brown Prom Queen toward the end of 2022, her second full-length album following 2019’s Athena. Natural Brown Prom Queen earned a glowing 9.0 review from Pitchfork, which labeled it as “Best New Music” and said the album “conjures a frenzied energy as emotionally soothing as it is physically crushing.”

Hailing from Seattle, singer and songwriter UMI first made a splash on the scene with 2018 single “Remember Me.” She released her latest album Forest In The City in 2022, which features some of her more popular tracks, including “say im ur luv” and “wish that i could.”

Duo Franc Moody‘s remix of Elia y Elizabeth’s “Alegría” was added to our on-air rotation for January — but their most popular track by far is their remix of Amber Mark’s “Lose My Cool” off her debut EP 3:33am. She performed the remixed version live at Pitchfork Music Festival in July 2022.

RELATED: Amber Mark At Pitchfork 2022: “Connecting Is The Really Important Part”

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Comedian, musician and actor Zack Fox is also set to perform. You may recognize him from his Vice News show, his freestyle studio session for “The Cave” with Kenny Beats where they created “Jesus Is The One (I Got Depression)” (and its subsequent Genius breakdown), or more recently, starring as Tariq, the boyfriend of Janine (Quinta Brunson) on the hit television show “Abbott Elementary.”

British experimental indie rock artist Bakar gained popularity with his 2018 album Badkid, which he followed up in 2022 with the release of sophomore album Nobody’s Home. You might recognize his most popular single, 2019’s “Hell N Back,” which has more than 200 million streams on Spotify.

hemlocke springs is an emerging artist out of North Carolina, gaining popularity on TikTok with her 2022 single “girlfriend,” and follow-up “gimme all ur luv.” Her style is poppy and fun, with eclectic vocal arrangements and dance-worthy production.