Lollapalooza Critics Spotlight 8 Rising Acts Who Turned Grant Park Buzz Into Breakout Momentum for Bigger Stages Ahead
CHICAGO, IL — Rain, mud and delayed gates did not slow down the hunt for the weekend’s next festival favorites at Lollapalooza 2026. WBEZ’s critics spent the holiday weekend moving from stage to stage in Grant Park, looking for the performers who felt ready to jump from early buzz to much bigger bookings.
The result was a list of eight acts that stood out for different reasons: a famous surname that did not overshadow the music, a homegrown Chicago-area crowd favorite, a vocalist overcoming technical trouble, and a few artists already shaping the kind of devoted fan base that can carry well beyond one soggy August weekend.
The names that made the strongest first impression
Cruz Beckham drew one of the weekend’s most surprising cheers. The 21-year-old, youngest son of David and Victoria Beckham, made his festival debut with his band The Breakers and won over critics with a performance that played like a genuine introduction rather than a celebrity novelty.
The Braymores also made a mark with a set that felt unmistakably local. The Barrington indie-rock quartet packed the BMI stage with fans, relatives and Chicago music lifers, leaning into a sound that recalled 1990s Wicker Park rock and surfy haze while celebrating a hometown slot they had clearly earned.
Elsewhere, Jae Stephens turned her BMI-stage debut into a sharp showcase for pop and R&B swagger. Her songs about romantic options and easy exits landed with the kind of confidence that made the crowd respond as if they were seeing a future headliner in miniature.
Artists who pushed the festival’s boundaries
Destin Conrad brought one of the most expansive sets of the weekend, mixing R&B, jazz and reggae flavors while leaning into a performance style critics described as loud, queer and unapologetically Black. The Florida singer used the set to underline how fluid his music can be, and why it feels built for a larger audience.
At the other end of the spectrum, horsegiirL transformed the Airbnb stage into a surreal dance party. The masked DJ and singer sold the joke, the concept and the music all at once, pulling a huge crowd with Eurodance energy, scrolling screen messages and a fully committed horse-inflatable spectacle.
Slayyyter also benefited from a bigger-stage bump, with organizers moving the electro-pop artist to a main stage as her profile rose. The St. Louis native, now performing as Catherine Grace Garner, leaned into the moment with a custom cap reading “Slayyyterpalooza” and the kind of self-aware spectacle that matched the audience’s enthusiasm.
What comes next for the weekend’s standouts
Amber Mark’s set showed why festival slots can matter even when they go wrong. After early microphone problems, the singer steadied the room and delivered polished covers and club-ready originals, a reminder that her return after a vocal fold hemorrhage is one of the weekend’s more meaningful comeback stories.
Die Spitz, meanwhile, made the most of a shortened, weather-disrupted set. The Austin metal-punk quartet earned praise for the force of its riot-grrrl-meets-heavy-metal attack, and WBEZ’s reviewers suggested they could easily be back at Lolla on a larger stage once the weather and schedule are more forgiving.
That is the larger thread running through the whole list. Lollapalooza has always been a place where future stars test themselves in plain view, and this year’s crop of standout newcomers made a strong case that their next appearances may not be in the afternoon slots for long.
Chicago's music scene, one story at a time — Chicago Music Guide.
