Lollapalooza Weekend is here!!

Chicago is infected with Lollapalooza fever!!  For the next 4 days, people from all over the world will be coming to the Midwest to celebrate the 25 year anniversary of this massive festival.  They are anticipating 400,000 people to attend this momentous occasion.  Lolla holds a special place in my heart.  I've been coming for the past 8 years and figured for this Throwback Thursday, I would reminisce my special moments I've encountered.  Let's begin!
Back in 2008 me and my ex-boyfriend attended a soccer match at Soldier Field.  After the game we took a stroll down Michigan Avenue and that's when we stumbled upon Lollapalooza.  It was nearing 8pm and we decided to see if we could score some last minute tickets.  There are always people around selling tickets at outrageous prices but we decided to stalk patrons leaving the venue.  We figured maybe they were willing to sell their wristbands.  We lucked out on a couple driving back to the burbs.  We offered to pay for their parking and that's when they handed over their wristbands.  They were done for the night so we figured we would give it a shot.  Once we walked in we raced over to the stage where Kanye West was set to perform and the rest was history!  We were hooked!
The following year we lucked out purchasing Friday single day pass tickets for Depeche Mode.  I was super excited to see one of my favorite bands perform.  Lollapalooza was something I looked forward to during the summer.  It became a way of life here in Chicago.  Although we didn't have tickets for Saturday or Sunday shows, we would still make our way downtown and listen to the acts from the outside.  We would have a picnic and stay til the whole show was over.  We loved to people watch and there was always something going on from the outside as well.
2010 we scored the 3 day passes.  You have to understand how difficult it is  purchasing tickets online when they are released.  People from all over the world are trying to obtain tickets at the same time.  The website would crash over and over again.  It's a treat when you get to purchase them.  My ex brought his daughters along too and they had a blast.  My friends also got in on the action and had tickets.  It was fun experiencing Lolla with a bigger group.  We watched Lady Gaga's performance and it was surreal!



Los Amigos Invisibles had beach balls at their stage!



Doing our best monster impersonation for Lady Gaga...

2011 Perry's stage was the place to be.  This time Lolla announced more international djs to entertain the ravers.  The music world was taking notice on EDM and their huge following.  Me and my friends scored single day tickets and I watched both Foster the People and Skrillex for Friday's lineup.  Of course you can't be in Lollapalooza and miss out on some rain.  Every Lolla I've been too, it's always turned into a mudfest.




It never fails, rain is always the forecast for Lollapalooza.

Don't forget your ponchos!

2012 was a difficult Lolla for me.  Me and my ex broke up earlier in the summer, and I knew attending this year without him would be hard for me.  My friend came along and we made the most of our time together there.  I absolutely adore her for coming with me. 

Cheers!  I'm having a glass of white wine instead of beer.  lol

I prefer wearing sneakers instead of sandals for Lolla.  Your feet taking a beating out there!

Me and my friends are addicted to lobster corndogs from Grahamwich!

2013 and I was still going through post breakup drama.  lol.  I can't believe we were still experiencing this together, but it was hard for us to be apart.  We were together for 7 years and we loved going to music festivals together.  We also had mutual friends which was sometimes hard for us to deal with.  On this occasion, a friend of ours had access to the backstage of Perry's stage and we couldn't pass up this opportunity.  We experienced Lolla from a different perspective and we loved it!  I missed dancing with the crowd, but at least backstage you viewed the crowd interacting with the djs.


2013 Lolla!

Made our way backstage at Perry's



Ran into playboy model Crystal McCahill backstage.  She's a babe!

This one is for the books!

2014 me and my friends got 3 day passes again.  It's funny because this is the Lolla I decided I couldn't do all 3 days again.  It's exhausting being out there for 10 hours!  Let's be honest, me and my friends would show up later for the main headliner acts, but still, it takes a toll on you.  I am fine not being able to rage all weekend.  We had a blast but at least we went out with a bang!

Iggy Azalea at Lolla!



Zedd's performance was amazing!





And now last year's Lollapalooza recap.  I did not manage to purchase any tickets.  I knew I was going on my Paris/ Italy trip and figured I'll just skip it that year.  Yeah right.  On Saturday I made my way down there to picnic outside the Bud Light stage.  I wanted to see Sam Smith and lucked out hearing him live from Lake Shore Drive.  What a treat!  He literally stopped traffic altogether.  People flocked to the streets to hear his voice.  The following day, I met up with a friend who was heading down to Lolla.  He had been there the whole weekend and we decided to see if we could score a ticket for me for Sunday's show.  We lucked out!  Once inside we danced the night away at Perry's stage for Nicky Romero and made our way to the Budlight stage for Bassnectar.  I had a blast as always.


Lolla 2015

Nicky Romero at Perry's



This year was a hassle again to purchase tickets online.  I ended up with a Sunday single day pass.  I'm not crazy about the lineup, but I will be definitely streaming Lolla at home to watch the rest of the acts.  I'm thinking of making my way down there to picnic on Saturday to listen to the music.  Watching people head over there was hard for me today since it's officially Day 1 of Lolla.  I guess you can say I'm in love with this festival.  I've had so many memories here that I will cherish forever.  I'm blessed to have had the opportunity to see some really great acts perform.  Like I said, Lollapalooza is a lifestyle!  And I love every minute of it!