Is Summer Smash Really the “Premiere” Hip-Hop Music Festival of the Midwest?
Hip-hop in Chicago is storied and complex. From hardened drill music popularized by Chief Keef and Lil Durk, to the melodic and soulful sounds from Kanye West and Chance the Rapper, the variety of rap music from the Midwestern metropolis has catered to audiences of all backgrounds, whether the appeal was intended or not.
The late 2010s brought about a “new wave” of Chicago hip-hop. Juice WRLD created dreamy, melodic music that again found success with fans across the city and country. His rise in success was aided in part by an aesthetic maintained by music videos directed by suburban Chicagoan Cole Bennett, the founder of Lyrical Lemonade. Started as an internet blog in 2013 while Bennett was still in high school, Lyrical Lemonade has grown into a multimedia company working with emerging artists and seasoned rappers from across the country.
Summer Smash 2021, Lyrical Lemonade’s attempt at an all-out music festival, was announced in March, a mere five months prior to the festival’s commencement. The rushed nature of the festival, amidst a pandemic in resurgence, led to mismanagement and chaos that may very well be caught in the undertow of the big-name headline performers.
Hailed as the “premier hip-hop music festival in the Midwest,” Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash returned in a three-day iteration this year in Chicago’s Douglas Park. Located on the west side
near Chicago’s North Lawndale and Little Village neighborhoods, the
festival brings in thousands of people who might not have ever come to the west side.
While COVID-19 variants are surging through the country, reinstated mask mandates in Chicago and required proof of vaccination status to enter the festival instilled an inkling of hope that there would be some collective sense of public safety. Upon entering the festival, it was clear that the proof of vaccination cards and/or the negative covid tests required to enter the festival was not being enforced. The festival was open to all ages, with the majority of attendees appearing to be high school or college-age, taking the L or an Uber into the city for one last festival before the school year commences.
Chicago was well represented at the festival, but the most anticipated acts were headliners A$AP Rocky, Lil Baby, and Lil Uzi Vert. A few artists on the lineup were unable to perform due to unforeseen circumstances, including Saba, Young MA, and the Kid Laroi. The Kid Laroi was rumored to be jumped near his trailer on Sunday before his set, however, this hasn’t been confirmed by Lyrical Lemonade or Laroi’s team.
It was clear that attendees had a lot of pent-up energy from the past year ready to be unleashed this weekend. Early on Friday, people in the general admission section began jumping the fence into the large VIP viewing area, which subsequently became non-existent through the rest of the weekend. During Lil Durk’s surprise performance, people began crowd surfing a loaded trashcan, and during Lil Baby’s set, security fencing was passed amongst the crowd. After day two, it was reported that a large number of the bar staff had quit after their safety was compromised when a large crowd rushed one of the bar tents and stole alcohol, trampled bystanders, fought staff, and broke equipment.
Shortly after Joey Purp’s set on Saturday, concertgoers were forced to evacuate and seek shelter due to severe weather. One of the designated shelters was nearby at Mount Sinai Hospital’s parking garage. As crowds of attendees were ushered to the third floor of the parking ramp, rowdy and over-confident teens were seen carrying parking cones, blocking cars attempting to leave, and ultimately being a nuisance to hospital workers and the local community attempting to live their weekend with some sense of normality. Mount Sinai is one of the trauma centers on the west side that takes in a high number of gunshot wound victims, and due to the crowd, ambulances were unable to respond to calls for an extended period of time. After less than two hours, the weather cleared up and Chicago Police removed everyone from the hospital parking garage.
By the third day, it was evident that security workers were extremely overwhelmed by fence jumpers, miscommunication with organizers, and utter mismanagement. Whether they were jumping fences or waltzing backstage right in front of security, nearly any attendee with a wristband and enough confidence was able to get backstage. This culminated into a swarm of nearly 100 concertgoers rushing the media area in front of the stage during Lil Uzi Vert’s set. While the invaders were encouraged by some “VIP” attendees, security personnel were steady in their pursuit to push them back. Whether warranted or not, one security guard brandished his handgun toward the eager crowd, causing a stampede in the opposite direction. At this point, trust in the planning of the festival and in the safety of artists and attendees
was completely lost.
While the mismanaged nature and rushed planning of the festival as a whole put a damper on the experience, artists still pulled through with exciting performances. Lil Baby put on an impressive show on the main stage performing hits like “On Me” and “We Paid,” spitting bar after bar, only skipping words to briefly catch his breath. Pi’erre Bourne, whose rap career has mostly been outshined by his production work, proved he can do it all, effortlessly rapping over his iconic effervescent beats with songs like “Poof” and “Hulu.” Despite his shortened set time due to Saturday’s evacuation, Earl Sweatshirt slowed it down with his alternative rap style performing songs like “Blood Seep” and “Ontheway!”. The festival also put on a Juice WRLD tribute set, paying homage to the late Chicago rapper on the same stage as one of his last shows, which was Summer Smash in 2019.
Summer Smash is still a young festival with lots to learn, but with the amount of money invested in artists and marketing, one would think it would have been managed with the least bit of courtesy to the local community and the workers who made it possible in the first place.