![]() ![]() A$AP Rocky’s last festival performance before the pandemic was Camp Flog Gnaw in November 2019, making it more than 18 months since he rocked in front of a gathering of disparate artist fanbases. I do wild things.”īesides fans being singularly focused on enjoying live performances they waited nearly two years to see, you could tell artists were anxious to get back on stage and make up for the lost time. When asked why he wasn’t wearing his mask while in close proximity to other festivalgoers, his answer is a microcosm of the prevailing sentiment throughout the festival: “Why am I not wearing my mask? To be quite honest with you, it’s because I’m 22 and I’m a wild boy. He said he was vaccinated with Moderna, while his friend next to him said he was vaccinated with Pfizer and kept his mask on hand. That assertion immediately came into question as he spoke with me maskless near the front of the Lyrical Lemonade stage and would later be seen bouncing around with other maskless patrons. The Lyrical Lemonade main stage attracted the most diehard fans, with Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Baby, A$AP Rocky, Latto, Baby Keem, and Yung Baby Tate all taking that stage over the three-day festival.ĬassiusLife spoke with a 23-year-old festival-goer named Demetris, who claimed to frequently attend festivals and said he felt “caged in at home” in 2020, calling the festival grounds his “home away from home.” Before Summer Smash, he said he attended two days of Lollapalooza and was able to socially distance himself from the deluge of festivalgoers by not fighting to be in the front of the crowd. From the second the festival opened to ticket-holders, people immediately ran across the grass to the stage they were planning on parking themselves for the day in anticipation of the main acts. That last caveat underscored a prevailing sentiment that permeated the entire festival: nothing was going to stop attendees from enjoying this festival as they did before the pandemic. The festival went as far as recommending masks, with organizers stating staff would encourage patrons to wear masks, something I must’ve missed in the sea full of unmasked teenagers huddled together risking limbs to turn up to Ski Mask The Slump God. In this new pandemic reality, the Instagram account for Summer Smash was recommending nearby COVID testing sites as well as offering their own at the festival grounds days before the festival on the same Instagram feed as photos of A$AP Rocky holding up bras rained on him from adoring fans during his headlining set on the first day of the festival. Pre-pandemic, festivals were using their Instagram feeds solely for the promotion and recapping the FOMO-inducing moments. In accordance with the City of Chicago, organizers mandated either full vaccination or a negative COVID test within 72 hours of the first-day attendees will be at the festival. ![]() Click here to support Block Club with a tax-deductible donation.Before a single drunken teenage foot stomped across the Douglass Park grounds for Summer Smash, it was clear music festivals were not going to look exactly how they did pre-pandemic. Every dime we make funds reporting from Chicago’s neighborhoods. Thanks for subscribing to Block Club Chicago, an independent, 501(c)(3), journalist-run newsroom. Every dime we make funds reporting from Chicago’s neighborhoods.Ĭlick here to support Block Club with a tax-deductible donation. Subscribe to Block Club Chicago, an independent, 501(c)(3), journalist-run newsroom. Heatwave organizers announced last month they were moving the June 10-11 event to Northerly Island. They held protests and met with officials, demanding more input into how the park district schedules private events on public space.Įventually, in November, the Park District pledged to give all Chicagoans more of a say in what events happen at their neighborhood parks. Some neighborhood youth programs and sports teams had to relocate due to the closures, while neighbors said they ran into issues like trash and glass being left in the park after the events departed. RELATED: With Much Of Douglass Park Closed To Public For 3 Music Fests, Some Residents Say ‘Almost The Entire Summer Is Ruined’ West Side neighbors organized throughout the summer and fall to reclaim Douglass Park after Heatwave Music Festival, Riot Fest and Summer Smash closed down parts of the park to neighbors for weeks at a time. cPF8VXgym6- The Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash March 15, 2023 ![]()
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