ARTS & POP CULTURE

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2022 tuftsdaily.com

Lollapalooza 2022 delivers memorable performances from iconic artists

Chelsea Cutler’s and Gracie Abrams’ Lollapalooza 2022 sets are pictured.

RYAN FAIRFIELD / THE TUFTS DAILY

by Ryan Fairfield

Assistant Arts Editor

Every summer, over a hundred artists are invited to Chicago’s Grant Park for a weekend of music and entertainment. Lollapalooza is one of the biggest music festivals in the United States, made up of nine different stages and lasting four days. Artists, both big and small, take the stage and perform for thousands of local Chicagoans and visiting attendees. This year’s Lollapalooza included popular headliners like Dua Lipa and Metallica as well as a plethora of artists from every genre.

Dua Lipa

Dua Lipa was the last act to perform on the T-Mobile stage on July 29 and delivered an energetic, outstanding performance. Dua is no stranger to Lollapalooza and has performed at the festival multiple times. However this year was her first time headlining. Coming off her Future Nostalgia Tour, Dua was well prepared to perform to a crowd of 120,000 people.

Starting off strong, Dua began with “Physical” (2020), which was the perfect opportunity to showcase her vocal and dancing abilities as well as the skills of her incredible backup dancers. Dua’s setlist did not disappoint, with a majority of the songs from “Future Nostalgia” (2020) in addition to her older hits like “New Rules” (2017) and “One Kiss” (2018).

It is not an exaggeration to say Dua Lipa was one of the best performances at Lollapalooza this year. Dua is not just a singer but a true performer. Whether it be dancing with umbrellas during “New Rules” or having giant inflatable balls made to look like the moon bouncing around in the crowd during “Levitating” (2020) her songs always had something extra to grab your attention or make them more engaging for the crowd without being distracting.

Gracie Abrams

Gracie Abrams is a rising star. Fresh off her This Is What It Feels Like Tour and opening for the first leg of Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour Tour, Abrams seemed imbued with a new level of confidence that felt different from her previous concerts, opening with “This Is What It Feels Like” (2021) and instantly capturing all of the audience’s attention. With Abrams, there is no dancing, no intricate set or accessories, just her, her microphone and a piano. The beauty behind the simplicity of Abrams’ performance is that even when she is on a large stage performing for hundreds of people at a festival like Lollapalooza, you can still feel that level of intimacy you would feel in a 150-person venue. Abrams’ music is best described as heartbreak pop. The style might seem out of place at a high-energy summer festival, but she made it work. Abrams brought out all of her biggest hits and had the audience singing and screaming alongside her. Similar to her previous concerts,

see LOLLAPALOOZA, page 9

CreaTe pre-orientation leaders, participants find community through art

by Alexis Enderle

Assistant Arts Editor

The CREATE pre-orientation program, formerly known as Arts @ Tufts, celebrated its fifth year this summer by introducing a new generation of Jumbos to the Tufts and Greater Boston arts scenes. CREATE stands for Cultivating Relationships by Engaging in the Arts at Tufts Experiences. Students from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, the School of Arts and Sciences and the School for Engineering all spent four days this August exploring different creative activities and settings.

Elena Campos, a student of the SMFA and School of Arts and Sciences, was the coordinator for the 2022 program, and explained exactly what CREATE entails.

“CREATE is one of the PreOrientation programs incoming students can participate in. Heavily affiliated with the SMFA, the four-day program focuses on introducing participants to art experiences and opportunities at Tufts and in the greater Boston area,” Campos wrote in an email to the Daily. “We host workshops, visit museums, and create art on both the Medford and Fenway campuses. I started working with CREATE when I was a leader last year. After having fun in that position, I decided to apply to be the coordinator for this year’s program.”

This year, CREATE participants visited SoWa, the Institute of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston in addition to participating in activities at the SMFA campus.

“We held workshops at the SMFA with specialized studios and the SMFA library. Participants made zines, painted, wove, and explored the metal and painting studios,” Campos wrote.

At the Medford/Somerville campus, the Department of Theatre, Dance and Performance Studies hosted workshops with professors and the Tufts University Art Gallery introduced the Class of 2026 to its newest exhibition.

Olivia White, an SMFA combined degree student graduating in 2023, spoke to the Daily about her own experiences as both a participant and leader of CREATE in an email.

“I decided to be a leader because my own experience doing a Pre-Orientation program as a freshman was so impactful, and I wanted to be able to create that kind of experience for other students,” White wrote in an email to the Daily.

The program’s grand finale in Barnum Hall on Aug. 30, where students modeled designs made out of recycled materials, was White’s favorite memory as a leader.

“It’s so wonderful to see everyone work together and be so excited about what they created, and the community that we’ve created in just four days becomes very apparent,” White wrote. “It’s also a lot of fun to see how creative people get with the materials they’re given!”

First-year Eli Morton told the Daily about their experience with CREATE. Like White, they loved the fashion show at the end.

“I think that was really when everyone was comfortable enough with each other to be silly and the things people came up with were entertaining, to say the least,” Morton said. “CREATE helped me adjust to the basic idea of college residential living while meeting people that had similar interests to me. I now have a lot more friendly faces going into the school year.”

by Jack Clohisy

Executive Arts Editor

Last summer, the Daily dove into how the music scene was resurrected after the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, but this summer, there has been a continued flourish of new music and experimentation. Tracks that make people want to dance alongside tracks that make people want to cry were incorporated into this all-encompassing list. If the remainder of 2022 has the creative vision and prowess exercised by the tracks of this summer, music listeners will be appropriately satisfied. Below are the top 10 songs (with one bonus track) that defined summer 2022, in no particular order.

“Glimpse of Us” by Joji

Megan Thee Stallion coined the term “Hot Girl Summer,” but Joji deconstructs this narrative with his reflective track “Glimpse of Us” (2022). Not the type of upbeat song one might expect on a summer playlist, but it was nearly impossible to avoid hearing the gripping ballad at least once this season.

“Vegas” by Doja Cat

The new Princess of Rap, Doja Cat released her new track “Vegas” for the summer blockbuster feature film “Elvis” (2022) in early May to acclaim from both critics and fans. Easily one of the best tracks in her discography, Doja Cat definitively stamps her mark both last summer with her most recent album “Planet Her” (2021), and now with her soundtrack hit.

“Keep Driving” by Harry Styles

With the release of his third studio album “Harry’s House” (2022), Harry Styles struck gold with one of the standard tracks. “Keep Driving” highlighted Styles’ growth as an experimental musician and lyricist with the edgy-and-iconic lines, “Cocaine, side boob / Choke her with a sea view.”

“Hot In It” by Tiësto and Charli XCX

This year has been the year of Charli XCX. With the release of her latest record “CRASH” (2022), Charli XCX earned her first U.S. Top 10 hit, and only a few months later, she released the ultimate club hit of the summer. “Hot In It,” produced by Tiësto, is a testament to the satirical-turned-empowerment anthem about self-confidence.

“29” by Demi Lovato

Fresh off the release of their latest album “Dancing with the Devil…the Art of Starting Over” (2021), Demi Lovato returned this summer with a string of new singles for their August release “HOLY FVCK,” including standout track “29.” A track that centers on an inappropriate 12-year age-gapped relationship, the power track stands apart in Lovato’s discography.

“ALIEN SUPERSTAR” and “BREAK MY SOUL” by Beyoncé

Nothing was more monumental than the return of Beyoncé this year. Because her latest record “RENAISSANCE” (2022) was so impressive, not one but two tracks had to make the list. The infectious lead single “BREAK MY SOUL” and fan-favorite “ALIEN SUPERSTAR” pay testament to the queer, Black pioneers of house music.

“In The Kitchen” by Reneé Rapp

New artist Reneé Rapp, known for her role on HBO Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls” (2021–), released her debut single “Tattoos” (2022) shortly before releasing her follow-up ballad “In The Kitchen.” The latter is an emotional reflection on a relationship past that mirrors the impact of “Glimpse of Us.”

COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS The covers of “Super Freaky Girl,” “Dolls EP,” “Glimpse of Us” and “Harry’s House” are pictured.

“Living Hell” by Bella Poarch

Last summer, TikTokerturned-musician Bella Poarch released “Build a Bitch” (2021), an infectious track that charted on the Billboard Hot 100. This highlighted the power of TikTok as a music promotional platform. Despite criticisms against influencers that all of them seemingly jump into a music career after they build a substantial following on social media, Poarch’s recent track “Living Hell” released this summer proves she can craft a strong summer pop track.

“This Hell” by Rina Sawayama

Three words: pride anthem 2022. That’s what “This Hell” by Rina Sawayama solidified this summer. A fusion track that combines a plethora of genres, “This Hell” is easily the best track by U.K. artist Sawayama off her upcoming studio album “Hold the Girl” (2022).

“Super Freaky Girl” by Nicki Minaj

As Doja Cat is the Princess of Rap, it’s only fitting that the Queen of Rap also makes her place known on this playlist. “Super Freaky Girl” (2022) was meant to be a hit. After “Anaconda” (2014) sampled the ‘90s track “Baby Got Back,” when it was announced that Minaj’s new song would sample ’80s classic “Super Freak,” it was a recipe for success. This list would be incomplete without the incorporation of “Super Freaky Girl” — Minaj’s first solo track to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Pop icons and rising stars wow at Lollapalooza

LOLLAPALOOZA

continued from page 8 Abrams found a healthy balance between her slower songs and her upbeat songs, which resulted in a lively, memorable set.

One moment from Abrams’ set stands out from the rest — her cover of “Dancing On My Own” (2016) by Robyn, frequently referred to as one of the best breakup songs of all time. Performing a song that is so iconic could have been intimidating, yet Abrams delivered a flawless cover. With crystal clear vocals, Abrams truly made the song her own and had the audience screaming every word alongside her.

Abrams ended her Lollapalooza set the same way she finished her opening act for the SOUR Tour, with “I miss you, I’m sorry” (2020). Before beginning, Abrams explained that the song was one of the first she ever released and described how she wrote it post-breakup. She said she had been feeling alone, but releasing the song connected her to those who took the time to listen to her music and helped her find community. Abrams told the crowd, “I felt really close to you guys when I put this song out. Please sing it with me.” This endearing anecdote energized the crowd, who sang along the loudest they had the whole performance.

Chelsea Cutler

Closing out the Coinbase stage on Saturday, Chelsea Cutler made sure to bring the spark and power to her performance. Cutler immediately took advantage of the stage layout and the large TV screens behind her, opening with “Under” (2021) and performing on an elevated part of the stage, while a field of sunflowers displayed behind her moved and pulsed with the music. Similar to Gracie Abrams, Cutler has an abundance of heartbreak-pop songs that she included in her set.

Although Cutler just concluded the first leg of her When I Close My Eyes Tour and is about to begin the second leg this fall, the best performances in her Lollapalooza set were the ones from her 2020 album “How to Be Human.” Following “Under,” Cutler moved into “Sad Tonight,” the first track from “How to Be Human.” This high-energy song encouraged the crowd to sing along to the lyrics displayed on the screens behind Cutler — hundreds of attendees screamed the pre-chorus, arguably the best part of the song, every time. Later on in her set, Cutler performed an acoustic version of “Crazier Things” (2020), a song that reminisces on a past relationship. Based on the number of people in the crowd recording on their phones, it was clear that this was an anticipated performance.

Cutler’s live vocals are wondrous. She is excellent at taking her songs and bringing the emotions to a new level that you do not feel on the original, recorded tracks. The best example of Cutler’s vocal abilities would have been her performance of “nj” (2020), a breakup song about her ex-girlfriend that captures the desire to relive moments with someone you once loved. With a loud bass and a strong, echoey backing track, Cutler gave an intense yet moving performance.

Charli XCX

The Bud Light stage had a disappointing start on the final day of Lollapalooza. Djo was the second artist to perform on the stage that day and delivered a good performance. However, nothing about it was that memorable, so there was a bit of pressure on Charli XCX to bring life back to the stage. Sadly, her showing was subpar.

One of the first issues with Charli’s performance was the choreography, which felt random, unnecessary and ultimately a distraction from the artist’s singing. Both the backup dancers and Charli herself seemed to be going through the motions as opposed to blending in the dancing and using them to bring the song to a new level. The performance overall lacked passion. It often felt as if Charli was performing for the sake of performing, rather than performing because she wanted to.

Some of the issues with Charli’s performance also fall on the crowd. At a concert, and especially at a music festival, the crowd has the power to create a lively atmosphere that makes everyone feel excited or they can set a tone that feels bland and unenthused. Charli’s crowd chose the latter. Of course, not every concert-goer will know every song and that is understandable. However, as an audience member, it is still possible to maintain a positive attitude even when the song is not known among the audience. It seemed that people at Charli XCX’s performance were only excited for two songs: “Vroom Vroom” (2016) and “I Love It” (2012). While these songs, as well as “Good Ones” (2022), were great moments in Charli’s set, it was still hard to move past the overall low quality.

Lollapalooza 2022

Lollapalooza was not lacking in talent this year. In addition to the artists mentioned above, there were countless talented individuals and groups that took the stage and delivered memorable performances. From WILLOW’s live rendition of “t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l” (2021) to Wallows’ enjoyable “Are You Bored Yet?” (2019), it seems that — after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic — Lollapalooza is back and reestablished as a summer staple for music lovers, both those in Chicago and those who travel from miles away to experience it.