She is beauty, she is grace, she is LØLØ! She’s taking the world by storm so buckle up for the ride. To date, I’ve seen her perform five times now, four of those shows as an opener. To anyone who dismisses an artist for being an opening act or not knowing who they are, you’re wrong. Every artist—big or small—once played to an empty bar or room. Then, one day, they blew up! This was LØLØ’s first headline tour, and she sold out so many shows. This past Wednesday night, she stopped at Beat Kitchen in Chicago, and I was fortunate enough to witness the show with my camera in hand.
I have been to Beat Kitchen a couple of times, and I love that it is both a bar and restaurant with a concert venue attached. It means during the colder months, I can hang out inside, grab a drink or some food, and relax before the show. There was a VIP upgrade for this tour, but I opted to not do it. I did, however, meet several of the fans who were participating. Let me tell you: I totally met her #1 fan that night. She went all out on her outfit, entirely dedicated to LØLØ, she even made bracelets to hand out. I was wearing a Green Day shirt since one of LØLØ’s songs references them, which meant I got a Green Day-inspired bracelet. It was literally the cutest one I’ve ever gotten at a show. I know she had the best time of her life, and I’ll mention later why.
The opener was Gus. I’ve never heard of him before, but he crushed his set. I even got to meet him before AND after the show. He was such a sweetie, and I cannot wait to see how his musical journey evolves. I did not know any of his music, but I left knowing that I needed to look him up on Spotify later. His music was fun, and while he gave off a little nervous energy during his set, who doesn’t? I’m not going to dock an artist for having nerves. We’re only human—I get nervous before any concert photoshoot! He had a little misstep with his stage cues and story between songs, but it was charming. I think the crowd really enjoyed his overall personality and music.
Finally, it was time for LØLØ. The stage crew came out and got it set up quickly, transforming the stage into a Wizard of Oz reference, complete with a yellow brick road and the tin man sitting stage right. It was such a cool overall vibe. I was super excited, and I knew the crowd was too. There was a brief “LØLØ! LØLØ! LØLØ!” chant that broke out for a moment before the house lights turned off and the stage ones turned on, flashing as her bassist and drummer took their spots. The crowd was cheering and screaming when she finally took center stage. She quickly broke into her first song, “omg,” and the entire room danced while singing along. The crowd knew the words to all of her songs—it was such a fun sight to see.
She had special surprises all throughout her set. When it came to “Debbie Downer,” a crowd favorite, she bought out Gus for a guest feature. Her sound guy threw pom-poms into the crowd, and she had an audience feature! This is one of the first songs I remember immediately falling in love with when I saw her open for New Found Glory in 2021 at Radius Chicago. She uses it to describe her vibe: emo cheerleader. So obviously, the pom-poms are required. The audience feature was none other than her #1 fan I had met earlier in the night. It was perfectly fitting—she wore a pink cheerleader outfit. It was so much fun to see her just lose her mind and have what probably was the best night of her life.
LØLØ is such a real, authentic artist, and I cannot wait to see her just continue to blow up. Unfortunately, her tour has wrapped up, but be sure to follow her on all social media platforms to find out where she will strike next. LØLØ forever.
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