A LOOK INTO THE 2018 PITCHFORK MUSIC FESTIVAL LINEUP

Written by: Alec Baumrind (@alecbaumrind)

Now that the weather is on a positive trend and the sun is starting to bless the city streets, there are a ton of things to look forward to. Some people are ready to flock the beaches, others are ready to slide on all the local fe’s, and there might just be a few people planning on going to their favorite summer music festival. Regardless of what move you might be making this spring, theres one move that you won’t want to miss: Pitchfork.

This summer, Pitchfork is shaping up to be one of the most exciting festivals of the summer when it comes to showcasing local Chicago talent. There are a variety of local favorites throughout the lineup that you can’t help but be excited about. Below you can look through the lineup yourself and see who's scheduled to hit the stages at Pitchfork this summer. With that being said, let’s take a deeper look into what local talent Pitchfork has to offer for 2018.

• Saba

If you’re not in tune already, you’re late. Saba (and the rest of Pivot Gang) has been nonstop killing it for the past few years and has continued to progress as an artist in many different ways. After the death of his cousin and dear friend John Walt, Saba and the rest of Pivot grew closer and decided to take the music to another level. His first project, “GETCOMFORTABLE”, was released in 2012. He followed that up with his project “ComfortZone”, in which he really honed in on his production skills, as he produced just about every track. Saba then went on to release his debut album, “Bucket List Project” in late 2016, which really put him and Pivot Gang on the map. Most recently, he has released his 2nd studio album Care For Me, which had a whole different sound than his previous projects.  The album showcased production from DaeDae, Daoud, and Saba himself. Features and additional vocals can be heard from Chance the Rapper, theMIND and Kaina. This project embodies a strong tracklist with songs such as Life, Grey, Prom / King, Logout, and Fighter. Since the release of his album, Saba has been busy touring the US with Pivot Gang, and we can only anticipate what kind of special show he could put on for Chicago at Pitchfork on Friday.

• Noname

Since the release of Noname’s debut project, “Telefone”, we’ve been able to get a better understanding of Noname as an artist. Telefone included songs such as Diddy Bop, Forever, and Shadow Man. The project was comprised of production from Executive Producer Cam O’bi, Phoelix, Saba, Monte Booker, and many others. Additionally, Telefone included features from artists including Raury, Smino, Rayvn Lenae, theMIND, Joseph Chilliams, Eryn Allen Kane, and others. Since the release of Telefone in mid 2016, Noname has been laying low. Though Noname has been on somewhat of a hiatus since the release of Telefone, there’s no doubt that the Chicago native has something up her sleeve. While there’s no word on what that may be, we can only hope for new music or even a new project. Noname recently killed her set at Coachella, so we can only expect her to go even harder for her hometown at Pitchfork. With Noname’s set being a part of the stacked Sunday lineup, plan to get here early to see a great performance from a hometown favorite.

• Smino

Smino has been on top of his game for the last year or so. Since the release of his first EP, “S!Ck S!Ck S!Ck”, everything has been falling in place for the St Louis native. Since the first EP, Smino has gone on to release another EP, Blkjuptr, and his debut studio album Blkswn. Blkswn featured songs such as Wild Irish Roses, Flea Flicka, Netflix & Dusse, Anita, and many more. The album also conisisted of production mainly handled by Smino’s right hand man Monte Booker, with assistance from Phoelix, THEMPeople, and Sango. Features on the album include Rayvn Lenae, Noname, Bari Allen, Jean Deaux and theMIND. Since the release of Blkswn, Smino has gone on 3 tours: one solo tour, a tour with T-Pain, and a tour with SZA. Smino has also been teasing tons of new music, including some more music with Monte Booker and music with ChaseTheMoney. We can only anticipate what’s next for Smino and Zero Fatigue, but until then, make sure you catch his set at Pitchfork on Sunday.

• Ravyn Lenae

Ravyn Lenae is another local gem that has been putting in an abundance of work for the past few years. In late 2015, Lenae released her first project “Moon Shoes” in 2015, which was later reissued in 2016. Since “Moon Shoes”, Ravyn Lenae has gone on to release her 2nd EP, “Midnight Moonlight”, which featured songs such as Spice and Unknown. Most recently, she has released her 3rd EP, “Crush”, which encases songs like Sticky and 4 Leaf Clover (ft. Steve Lacy). Crush was executively produced by Steve Lacy, only features Lacy, and Ravyn has since stated that the project was worked on solely with Lacy. Since the release of Crush, Ravyn has gone on a solo tour that enlisted support from a variety of different artists as openers. As we will have to wait to see what’s coming up from Ravyn Lenae, in the meantime make sure to go see her set at Pitchfork on Sunday!

• Kweku Collins

Kweku Collins has come a long way with his music. After being a recent high school graduate, back in 2015, Collins had emailed his EP “Worlds Away” to Chicago based independent label Closed Sessions. After hearing the music, Closed Sessions had invited him to record with them and signed him soon after. In 2015 he released his second EP “Say It Here While It’s Safe” and followed that up with his first full length album “Nat Love”. Since “Nat Love”, Collins has gone on to release a second album titled “grey”. This album consisted of production mainly from Collins and features and additional vocals from Allan Kingdom, Kipp Stone, Sylvie Grace and more. The future is bright for the young artist coming out of Chicago, and you can catch him live at Pitchfork with the majority of the Chicago artists on Sunday!


Tickets: Tickets for Pitchfork come at very reasonable prices. 3-Day passes are only $175 while single day passes are $75. VIP or “+PLUS” passes cost $375 for a 3 day VIP experience. You can find all ticket options and information via the link below. Grab yours soon before they're all gone!

PITCHFORK TICKETS