Strong female performers bring heart and soul to Lollapalooza

Lollapalooza had a strong representation of the female persuasion in 2021. Thursday July 29 Miley Cyrus headlined with a powerful set that included several guest stars, including rocker Billy Idol. 

Canadian singer Tate McRae, who many will know from the television show So You Think You Can Dance, showed stylish and ready to go on the weekend. Her new single with out singer Troye Sivan “You” is swiftly climbing up the charts and with good reason. It spotlights her unique voice and is quite catchy. She confessed backstage that she hasn't met Sivan yet, but hopes to, since he's currently in Australia.

She also talked about what led to being signed on a major label, “I had a YouTube video for dance. I wound up writing a song for it and it went viral.”

Her fans are called The Tater Tots and have been supportive of her career. She is currently writing a novel and performing at several festivals in the future. She mentioned playing at iHeart's Pride Festival in the past. “It was fun!”

Solo singer Jessia was such a treat to interview backstage. It was her first time in Chicago. Her music career started with a bang on January 1, 2021 after posting a song on TikTok. “It has been nonstop ever since.” She spoke about her song “I'm Not Pretty” a bit, “It is definitely bittersweet. The lyrics are not what you want to say about yourself, of course. It's about shaking your bum and your belly and not caring what anyone else thinks.” She worked with Bebe Rexha recently, who also talks about body positivity.

There was more mental health to be found with a strong focus on that possibly from the pandemic. The very creative force known as Elohim is a one woman show that battles anxiety and is determined to bring more awareness to the subject. She confessed, “I struggled with anxiety, panic attacks and dissociation disorder really bad when I grew up. I wrote a song about it and got so many messages. Many people felt the same way, so I have written more about it.”

It was a challenging journey mentally for the artist to play at Lollapalooza. “When I saw face in the audience crying, I knew there was a purpose for me to be here. I felt power from it. I realized the stage is a place to let out all my demons and is my safe place.”

She talked about working on a song called “Love Is Alive” with Louis The Child, who are from the suburbs of Illinois. “We hadn't met each other before and sometimes writing sessions can be weird because it is like a blind date. It could have been awkward, but we got along so well. We walked around the studio and were dancing. The words just poured out of me. It felt great!”

Her goals as an artist are to keep growing as human being and to spread love. “Passion and empathy are so important to me. I just did a headline show last night and seeing people in the front was like a movie. People come up to me after that have noticed the love in the room. It is the greatest gift in the world. I realized there is a greater purpose to all of this.”

Female fronted band Cannons is made up of Michelle Joy, guitarist Ryan Clapham and keyboardist/bassist Paul Davis. They found each other on Craigslist.

“Fire for You” is on constant rotation on Chicago radio stations and their set at the T-Mobile Stage was artistically on fire on Saturday afternoon.

Joy said the whole reason she started in music was to hear new things that didn't exist on the radio. “Now I can turn up our song when I am in the car. It is such a good feeling!”

The name of the group came from the books 33 1/3 about making records. My Bloody Valentine were on one of the segments and they were described as “loud like a sound cannon,” so Clapham took the name from that.

Their advice to other bands is to stick with things and possibly play Lolla one day. The gold outfits were put together by a stylist and Joy said she was inspired by Cher's clothes from the '70s. Davis mentioned that much of their first audiences have been from the LGBT community. “It's been really cool to see that.”

Joy was first inspired to be a performer because of Gwen Stefani. “She was a girl in a band and I wanted to be in one too!”

The trio return to the Windy City on November 23 at the House of Blues Chicago and just debuted a cover of Bruce Springsteen's “Dancing in the Dark.”

Singers like Lady Gaga, Kesha and Dua Lipa have all performed in the past at Lollapalooza. Which one of these will be next in terms of breakout stars? Only time will tell!