Summer Smash Brought the Heat. Chicago’s Still Feeling It.

Two months after Lyrical Lemonade and SPKRBX Events' Summer Smash festival wrapped up at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, the event's impact on Chicago's hip-hop scene is still being felt. The June 20-22nd festival, known for its signature fusion of gritty, mosh-pit rap, delivered a year that felt like a transitional chapter somewhere between growing pains and maturity.

The three-day festival drew more than 100,000 people, with more than sixty acts spread across two stages and one tent. Future, Chance the Rapper, Sexyy Red, and Young Thug were headliners for a lineup that was stacked with fan favorites. Attendance reportedly dipped, however, according to a longtime festival-goer, Malani Hughes. “There were more people last year; this year feels about 50 percent smaller,” she said. The smaller crowd may have reflected the weekend’s extreme heat and rising ticket costs.

Still, SeatGeek proved to be a solid home for a festival of this scale. The infrastructure was better suited than in previous years, as the stadium offers a more structured environment than the festival’s prior home in Douglass Park.

The weekend delivered its share of highs. Don Toliver and Yeat’s entrance made a statement, as they parachuted together from a helicopter for their arrival. Lil Tecca’s set drew one of the strongest crowds of Saturday, followed by headlining acts Sexyy Red and Future. G Herbo reminded everyone why he’s a South Side champ, bringing out his son Yoshon to perform his first song. The crowd bounced and rocked as they cheered on the seven-year-old, who goes by the rapper name “Baby Crash.” Herbo hyped him up with pride, never leaving his side throughout the entire performance.

Chance the Rapper’s vibrant and immersive stage design fit his semi-nostalgic setlist, performing mostly songs from 2016 Coloring Book such as “Blessings,” “No Problem,” and “All Night.” He expressed heartfelt gratitude to his fans.

“I just want to say thank you so much to anyone that’s a day one supporter. If you look around, and you see all these people, this is something that you built. This wasn’t built by a label, the industry, or machine; this was built by y'all,” Chance said.

Multiple attendees noted that parking was overpriced ($62/day or $135 for the weekend) while set times weren't always reliable. Sound quality was also inconsistent, with only the major headliners or local favorites consistently maintaining high-quality, balanced audio throughout their sets.

Despite the extreme heat, attendees came prepared and maintained a certain level of respect throughout the festival. Even in the peak heat and amid large, tight crowds, most attendees maintained their space and showed patience.

Trippie Redd

Three days after welcoming his first daughter with rapper Coi Leray on June 17, Trippie Redd burst onto the Summer Smash stage with a different energy, one that blended the euphoria of new fatherhood with the raw emotion that has defined his career since 2017.

The Ohio artist's performance transported audiences through a sonic time capsule, opening with cuts from his breakthrough era before seamlessly weaving through fan favorites from 2021's Trip At Knight and his most recent 2024 release, A Love Letter to You 4, featuring “The Grinch.” Despite an exhausting week balancing personal milestones with professional commitments, Trippie's stage presence remained hypnotic, his melodic delivery cutting through the Chicago air with the same vulnerability that first captivated listeners in the late 2010s.

His signature blend of emo-rap and rock sensibilities resonated deeply with the crowd, who screamed every word back to him, creating an emotional exchange that seemed to energize the artist.

Ski Mask The Slump God

Fresh off the release of “Jumpy”, his new collaboration with Indonesian rapper Rich Brian, Ski Mask The Slump God brought his signature theatrical energy to Summer Smash, though his set carried deeper emotional weight than others. The Florida rapper, ditching his trademark multi-colored durag, delivered his contagious flow across hits like “Nuketown” and “Catch Me Outside,” maintaining the nostalgic-themed aesthetic that has defined his sound.

However, it was his tribute performances that revealed another layer. He dedicated three songs to fallen friends: “Lean With Me” and ”Legends” for Juice WRLD and “Look At Me!” for XXXTentacion. The interludes softened his set’s frenetic energy, creating moments of reverence within the chaos. These weren't just covers, but deeply personal tributes to his juvenile detention cellmate and Members Only collective co-founder, XXXTentacion, whose 2018 death fundamentally changed the trajectory of Ski Mask’s career.

The tributes demonstrated Ski Mask's commitment to honoring those who shaped both his artistry and the genre itself. His animated delivery and stage presence remained intact, but the emotional undertones revealed an artist balancing the celebration of life with acknowledgment of loss, a complexity that continues to define his evolution beyond his initial breakthrough.

Jasiah

Three months after releasing his debut studio album No Holds Barred, the twenty-eight-year-old Dayton, Ohio rapper proved his endurance under Summer Smash's punishing conditions.

Opening with “Almighty Siah” the album's commanding first track, Jasiah immediately established his presence before playfully admitting to the crowd, “I thought only thirteen people was gone show up,” a humble moment that belied the passionate fanbase that had gathered despite the 95-degree heat and 106-degree heat index.

What followed was a masterclass in sustained intensity. The producer, songwriter, and vocalist—who notably rejects the “rapper” label—powered through fan favorites like “Art of War,” “Break Shit,” and “Crisis,” his guttural screams cutting through the oppressively warm air.

Jasiah’s trap-metal hybrid sound, evolved from his underground days as Malachi Pate through various aliases, showcased the range that has defined his career since Cole Bennett's 2019 “Crisis” video launched him into mainstream consciousness.

The set's progression from aggressive anthems like “Will Smith” and “On the Hunt” to more melodic “Sarah” demonstrated his artistic versatility, while closing with “Ghostkilla,” a collaboration with 1nonly, brought the energy full circle. Despite conditions that would drain most performers, Jasiah's relentless delivery proved that his “No Holds Barred” era represents an artist fully committed to his craft, regardless of the elements.

1900Rugrat

1900Rugrat commanded attention with the magnetic presence of an artist on the precipice of something bigger. The crowd moved in synchronization with every gesture, defying the stiff humidity as he delivered “One Take Freestyle”—the track that launched him into widespread

recognition in 2024, and “Cheat Codes” with his distinctive voice splitting the sweltering stadium atmosphere.

Following the familiar trajectory of SoundCloud-era pioneers like Ski Mask and XXXTentacion, 1900Rugrat built his foundation through social media uploads before transitioning to his debut studio album Porch 2 The Pent, released in February 2025. His performance showcased the raw charisma that has quickly distinguished him in hip-hop's crowded landscape, but also raised intriguing questions about artistic longevity.

Watching him command the Summer Smash stage, one couldn't help but wonder whether his future lies in deepening his current sound or following the genre-fluid path of artists like Post Malone, who successfully expanded beyond hip-hop's boundaries. For now, though, 1900Rugrat remains firmly planted in his lane, his distinct vocal delivery and stage presence suggesting an artist confident in his current direction. His performance felt like witnessing a pivotal moment: a rising talent proving he belongs while the music world watches to see which direction he'll choose next.