Chicago Flooding Forces Lollapalooza 2026 to Cut Wolf Alice, Cortis Sets Short

Severe flooding hit Chicago's Lollapalooza on day three, Saturday, August 1, 2026, after overnight rain soaked the festival grounds. Organizers pushed the gate opening from the scheduled noon start to 3pm, and several sets were cut or cancelled as a result. According to NME, Wolf Alice's planned hour-long set was trimmed to 40 minutes, while K-pop group Cortis had their set cut from 50 to 40 minutes and moved to a later slot in the Saturday lineup.

What happened on site

Heavy rain fell over Chicago the night before, leaving Hutchinson Field badly waterlogged; footage from the grounds showed sections turned to mud. Organizers issued two statements as the situation developed: the first pushed entry to 2pm citing the overnight storms, and a second delayed it further to 3pm while crews worked on pumping and cleanup.

Despite the disruption, the day still produced its share of festival moments: Sombr brought out 5 Seconds of Summer for a joint appearance, The Smashing Pumpkins reunited onstage with former member Melissa Auf der Maur, and Lorde brought out Charli XCX during her set for a rendition of "Girl, So Confusing."

This year's lineup

Lollapalooza 2026 began July 30 at Chicago's Grant Park, with headliners including Olivia Dean, Charli XCX, Tate McRae, Lorde, The xx, John Summit, Jennie, and The Smashing Pumpkins. The rest of the bill includes Wet Leg, Ethel Cain, Turnstile, Little Simz, Beabadoobee, CMAT, and Yungblud, among others.