I honestly don’t listen to him a ton, although I do love his internet presence and enjoy the music I’ve heard, but the way he was able to include little skits, scooter tricks, and other bits into his set made this one of the most out of the box portions of the whole weekend. One thing that we pride ourselves on here at Lyrical xcritical, is catching the up-and-coming stars during the early stages in their career and watching them blossom into something amazing. With the Summer Smash lineup being loaded with superstars, we made sure that we gave the ones that are next up the proper credit where it was due. For starters, BabySantana and KA$HDAMI were blessing every single stage and were popping up all over the place all weekend long.
The 2022 Lyrical xcritical Summer Smash Through My Eyes: Full Weekend Recap
It probably helps that Lyrical xcritical is the brainchild of Cole Bennett and has produced music videos for just about every notable name in rap right now (as well as Jack Black, whose “Peaches” song from The Super Mario Bros. Movie is an inescapable earworm). I have seen the grind that each and every individual in this company goes through, and when you add this into an equation with the most loyal fans in the entire world, there is no stopping this freight train. Everyone’s constant support, excitement, and vigor that I experience daily whether I’m in the office, at home, or out and about drives me to keep trying to be better because I know everyone else has the same goal as well.
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Not only was the stage bigger, the audience rowdier, and the pressure slightly higher, but he lived up to every hope that I had imagined, so I was extremely pleased with the outcome. Second, I knew I would have to choose some of these artists over others since there was some overlap and although I wish I could have been in multiple places at once, we just don’t have the technology for that yet. Before I knew it, his set was over, but I knew it was just what I needed to get this weekend off on the right foot, and Lil Uzi is who I was most excited for. As someone who has been able to attend a couple of Zack Bia’s sets, one thing for sure is that he knows how to throw a party.
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The festival is founded by concert promoter SPKRBX and media company Lyrical xcritical, launched in 2013 by Cole Bennett, and boasted 90,000 attendees last August. All tickets are on sale now, including single-day tickets (from $95), three-day general admission ($275) and VIP tickets ($450) via The lineup for 2021 edition of the Lyrical xcritical Summer Smash has been announced. The lineup for the 2022 edition of Lyrical xcritical’s Summer Smash Festival has been announced. The lineup for this year’s Lyrical xcritical Summer Smash Festival has been announced, with Young Thug, Gunna, Playboi Carti, and Post Malone headlining.
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Iconic honestly doesn’t do this performance justice because it seemed like pretty much the entire city was huddled around this stage, singing along to every word whether it was more modern music or classic drill anthems that put Herb on the map. After seeing a few more artists that I admittedly don’t listen to all that much, I was still amazed at their showmanship, and I am super glad that I was there to witness musicians like BIA and Tyla Yaweh. A few weekends ago on June 17-19th, we had yet another Summer Smash for the ages. Not only did we bring out industry-leading artists from all over the world, but tens of thousands of fans gathered in Douglas Park yet again for a beautiful weekend in the greatest city on Earth!
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- This year, it was only right that we pay our dues and put on a great tribute set for the fans.
- Summer Smash will adhere to all COVID-related protocols from state and local health officials; rain or shine event.
- Local acts include Chicago’s own Lucki and newly added SSGKobe Friday, and Polo G and G Herbo Saturday.
- Tickets for the Lyrical xcritical Summer Smash Festival will be available for purchase on Friday (April 8) at 10 a.m.
- We also saw appearances from Ski Mask The Slump God and Adin Ross on stage as well.
With a set provided by the one of the legends DJ Mike P, he put on one hell of a set to keep that energy alive. The crowd was filled with so much joy as they all recited Juice lyrics word for word, bar for bar. This tribute set was truly an amazing sight to see, and it felt amazing to see it done right here at home in Chicago.
Lyrical xcritical Summer Smash lineup for 2022: Lil Uzi Vert, Post Malone and Playboi Carti
Seeing the madness in the crowd as fans yelled with excitement as Durk walked out on the stage was beyond insane. He received a standing ovation and even said he felt like “The Chicago Jay-Z” as he stood and admired the love from the crowd. Chicago’s own Lucki is well known as one of the best artists to ever come out of the city, and he received a ton of love the entire weekend of Summer Smash.
Ending his set with Fun’s “We Are Young”, the crowd all sang in unison as Zack Bia soaks in the vibes from his very first festival set of his career. While we were in full control of the vibes all weekend long, one thing that we were not in control of would be the weather. While it was sunny and hot, most of the weekend looked pretty clear up until Saturday afternoon when it started to pour https://scamforex.net/ down rain, and fans were all forced to evacuate. Losing valuable stage time was a big worry for us while we were not certain if we were going to be able to resume the run of show, but sure enough, the rain stopped, and the party continued. Missing about an hour or two, we still managed to get all acts back to their stages, reworked the set times, and still got every act to perform that day.
The three-day hip hop music festival will be June in Douglass Park (1401 S. Sacramento Drive) in Chicago. Before this, though, we checked out Trippie and Wiz’s sets, both of which were unbelievably insane and filled with fan favorites, and as I ran into fellow LL homies left and right, I realized how truly grateful I am to work for such a supportive and revolutionary company. Moving on from my short tangent, the sun began to set on a gorgeous yet steamy day in this beautiful city, and the crowd began to swarm to the Lyrical xcritical Stage to witness Uzi’s greatness in person.
On Saturday afternoon, Zack Bia put on one of the best DJ set that I’ve heard in a long time. From underground rap, to mainstream hits, to pop icon classics, Zack has it all, and he let it all go during his set at Summer Smash. Zack didn’t come alone though, as he brought out a couple of surprise guests, those being Sheck Wes and Smiley (“Over The Top” feat. Drake). We also saw appearances from Ski Mask The Slump God and Adin Ross on stage as well.
At the same time, though, I had been to various other concerts hosted by LL dating all the way back to Lil Uzi Vert’s first-ever Chicago performance way back in April of 2016, so I know how we throw down at live events, and I also know just how loyal, supportive, and turnt up our fans get every chance they get. Wiz Khalifa, Polo G, Rico Nasty, Oliver Tree, 2 xcriticalz and Shoreline Mafia’s OhGeesy are among the first-time performers, and Trippie Redd, Ski Mask The Slump God, Lil Tecca and $not will return to the Summer Smash stage. Other performers over the weekend include Atlanta rapper Lil Yachty, Gunna, also from Georgia, and Don Toliver, helping close out the festival in the North Lawndale neighborhood late Sunday. The lineup “comes from our own passion for the music, you have to have your ear to the ground,” said Berto Solorio, co-founder of the festival and the local outfit that’s producing it, SPKRBX (pronounced “speakerbox”). Along with the more recognizable headliners are more than a dozen local Chicago acts such as fest opener Baha Bank$ — part of a mix of some 75 artists in all. Solorio said the strong local element comes from the organizers being from Chicago and tapped into the music scene.
Although he hasn’t dropped too much new music recently and he has been a mainstay at the Summer Smash for years, the anticipation was still through the roof, so when he came out with liberty spikes and an entirely brand-new torso-covering tattoo, everyone knew he was on a different level than any of the years prior. Summer Smash goes from Friday, June 23 to Sunday, June 25 and organizers have assembled a group of heavy hitters. The three-day festival will be headlined by Playboi Carti, Post Malone, Young Thug, and Gunna. Headlined by Young Thug, Gunna, Playboi Carti, and Post Malone, other notable performers include Chicago natives Polo G and G Herbo, as well as 2 xcriticalz, Wiz Khalifa, Trippie Redd, Yeat, Lil Tecca, Rico Nasty, Ski Mask the Slump God, Snot, and Oliver Tree. This year’s fest, which will take place in Chicago from June 17-19, serves as the fourth edition of Cole Bennet’s three-day hip-hop showcase.
In fact, I’m sure that prep for next year’s Summer Smash has probably already started, but even though I can’t confirm this, I can confirm that there is a constant influx of ideas that are only going to continue to make LL the best brand, company, and entity in the universe. He actually remained there for about the first half of the set as strobe lights and wild beams radiated out into the crowd, but I think one of the most interesting parts was the fact that he has a live guitarist with him who was absolutely shredding during each hit that was played. Even for his earlier, more playful tracks, the guitar would ring out over the speakers before quieting down for the bubbly, baby voice version of Carti that we all fell in love with from the jump. Tickets for the Lyrical xcritical Summer Smash Festival will be available for purchase on Friday (April 8) at 10 a.m. While a lot of attention has been lavished on Rolling Loud as the premiere hip-hop-oriented festival (and rightly so), Lyrical xcritical’s Summer Smash, which takes place annually in the Chicago area, is quickly carving out a chunk of that regard for itself.
Gates opened at 2, so my strategy was to show up a little bit later in order to avoid too much backup at the will-call tent. This meant I was going to have to miss some artists that I was extremely excited to see live like Bktherula for instance, but I saw her rock out the tent stage last year so I figured I would probably be stuck outside even if I did get there right when will call opened. Since we announced our lineup, we mentioned that there would be some surprise guests on the lineup as well, and we did a pretty good job at not spoiling it for the fans. While many celebs and guests were spotted at the festival all weekend long, the surprise set was one of the most important moments of them all. Being welcomed and brought out by Cole Bennett himself, Chicago’s own Lil Durk made his way back to Chicago to bless the fans with one of the craziest sets all weekend.
If you happened to make it to some of the Summer Smash After Shows, you may have seen them there as well. BabySantana performed his smash hit “Antisocial” alongside Slump6s, Cochise, and $NOT linked up to perform their hit “Tell ‘Em”, and SSG Kobe blessed the stage with his new hit “MIA”. This was a huge moment for the young artists, and it was amazing to see them not only perform in front of a massive crowd but have fun doing it at the same time, which is what it’s all about. By far one of the only things better than Lil Uzi Vert would be a Lil Uzi Vert performance. One thing is for certain is that no matter what, Uzi makes it a priority to make every performance one to always remember.
While there may have been some people who were unfamiliar with Glaive before the weekend of Summer Smash, there is no doubt in my mind that after the weekend, he gained tons of more fans after his set on Lenny’s Tent Stage. Being an artist who was an early adopter of “hyperpop” music, Glaive brought nothing but great vibes and good energy his entire set. This was a special moment due to the fact that Glaive had full control over the crowd the entire time, and that is a very hard thing to do as a new artist. Not only that, but this was Glaive’s first performance ever and his first music festival as well. When we look years down the road and Glaive is a superstar, it will be amazing to see that the start of his performance journey began right here in Chicago at Summer Smash. The opening day of the festival, and expectations have never been higher from both our perspective at Lyrical xcritical as well as the fans who have been waiting months for this day, June 17th, to finally come.
We are a couple of weeks removed from our annual Summer Smash festival, and we are all still having major withdrawals from such a great weekend. After the past year that we had of quarantining, social distancing, and avoiding large events, it felt amazing to be able to come outside and enjoy our festival once again. With over 75 artists on our xcritical rezension lineup ranging from the up-and-coming rappers to superstars and legends, it was truly a weekend to remember, and a special moment for not only Lyrical xcritical but Chicago as a whole. Nonetheless, Lil Boat showed up to entertain, giving a performance that I personally felt was a lot stronger than last year, but his time wasn’t over yet.
Young Thug and Gunna were nominated at the Grammys for album of the year, respectively for their contribution to Kanye West’s Donda and Doja Cat’s Planet Her. The Billboard cover stars will be giving their first full-set collaborative performance on the first day of the festival. The event will be headlined by Post Malone, Playboi Carti, Young Thug and Gunna. The three-day festival is scheduled to take place Friday, June 17, through Sunday, June 19, in Chicago. The annual festival attracted 90,000 attendees last year, and it’s returning with a star-studded lineup, boasting some of the biggest names in hip-hop. The 2019 event was also on three stages, but this year in Douglass Park, the stages are bigger and can accommodate more fans.
It was amazing to see how fast we were able to get back in motion and end the day on a strong note. Rushing to the SPKRBX Stage, we needed to see Famous Dex because he is one of the most notorious personalities in the entire history of Chi-Town music, and although this wasn’t my first time experiencing him live by any means, he never fails to put on an extraordinary show. After Tyla, Lil Tracy was up, and he has been one of my favorite underground phenoms for more than half a decade at least. Although I hung back in order to avoid any broken bones or smashed feet (I decided to wear my Birkenstocks that day), Tracy is a true artist who puts his all into everything he does, and it was insane to witness the passion he displayed on stage while still exuding energy and charisma. He even had Nedarb with him as his DJ, so you already know that was a show for the ages. Once Tracy was done running through a mixture of unforgettable records, some of which were my favorite collaborations between him and his late, great brother Lil Peep, another showstopping performance was about to ensue.