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From its rebellious beginnings in the 1990s to its international expansion, Lollapalooza’s tale is one of cultural development, resiliency, and reinvention.
Jane’s Addiction’s 1991 farewell tour quickly evolved into one of the most iconic music festivals in the world- Lollapalooza!
At this moment in time, only a handful of music festivals enjoy the colossal level of fame that lollapalooza does, and even fewer of them manage to achieve this level of popularity globally. Currently, the annual alt rock festival held in Chicago every year draws a crowd of over four lakh people; however, this wasn’t always the case. The journey of ‘Lolla’ as its fondly called by the fans and bands has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride-
An Ending Led to Its Inception
In 1991, Perry Farell, the lead singer of Jane’s Addiction, decided that their fans deserved one last hurrah before the alternative rock band bid adieu for good. But, instead of just one concert, he decided they would do a multi-city tour with stops in over twenty cities in the U.S. along with a diverse collection of bands like Violent Femmes, Siouxie and the Banshees, and Nine Inch Nails, all of which were known to be mavericks. To his surprise, the response was far greater than he could ever imagine, and this led to the birth of what Farell called the ‘Alternative Nation’, a common home for artists who preferred to stay at the periphery of mainstream music.
The Festival Ebbed and Flowed
‘Change is the only constant’ is a cliche that proved to be true when it came to the festival’s journey. After remaining one of the top-selling music festivals in America, Farell’s dream hit a bump in the road when ticket sales fell to an all-time low six years after its conception due to a controversy over the inclusion of the heavy metal band ‘Metallica’ in 96, which people viewed as deviating from the alt rock genre, and suddenly there was a decline in interest by artists who were a part of the counterculture to go on tour. Despite attempts to revive the festival, the efforts of Jane Addiction’s singer fell short, and thus the first series of Lollapalooza came to an end.
It wasn’t until five years later that he tried to bring the festival back to life; however, the comeback was short-lived as ticket sales failed to pick up pace even in 2003 due to high prices and Perry had no choice but to fold once again. This remained true until he made the decision to partner with a Texas-based agency known as Capital Sports Entertainment (now C3 Presents) and re-shuffle the format and make the gathering, a weekend destination festival to be held in Chicago every year with over seventy different artists and since then, there has been no looking back.
Beyond Music
Farell wanted anything and everything that advocated for counterculture or was’slightly bizarre’ to be a part of the Lollapalooza experience, be it music-related or not. Hence, what also piqued the interest of concertgoers was the inclusion of these non-musical segments in the festival that stretched the boundaries of what alternative rock meant. It was performers such as the Jim Rose Circus Side Show, an alternative freak show, and the Shaolin monks who expanded the boundaries of rock culture. Apart from this, there were tents for the display of art pieces, virtual reality games, and information tables for political and environmental nonprofit groups that promoted counterculture and political awareness.
Expanding Beyond USA
Over a decade after its debut, the first overseas edition of lollapalooza was organized in Chile’s capital Santiago in the year 2010. The lineup here was one for the books, as it included Jane’s Addiction, Thirty Seconds to Mars, The National, Manny and Gil, The Latin, The Drums and The Killers, among others. The year later, Farrell decided to expand in the South American region, with the next destination being Brazil and then Argentina. However, the European version of the festival didn’t happen until 2014, with Germany being the first country in the EU to hold the festival and it wasn’t until later that countries like France, Sweden and Israel witnessed the extravaganza.
Moreover, it wasn’t too long ago that India became the first Asian country to host the festival in Mumbai with legendary headliners like AP Dhillon, CAS, Imagine Dragons and The Strokes, among others. Now, three years after their debut in Asia, the festival is all set to make a much-awaited return this weekend in Mumbai, with a star-studded lineup that has Green Day, Shawn Mendes, Louis Tomlinson and Glass Animals as its headliners!
