Review: Gracie Abrams scores one for girl pop in her opening day Lollapalooza set
'Lollapalooza,' she addressed the audience during her opening track, 'holy (expletive).'
A student of the Taylor Swift school of songwriting, Abrams' set was the concert to cry to as the evening of Day 1 fell upon Chicago's Grant Park. Selling her journal entry-earnestness with a coy smile and yearning gleam in her eyes (which literally sparkled in the sun along with her sequined outfit), she strummed her acoustic guitar like she was afraid of running out of time during her hour-long set. Anthems for the anxiously attached, rise up!
By the time the viral hit 'I love you, I'm sorry' arrived a mere three songs in, the majority of folks were staunchly shoulder to shoulder.
Lollapalooza 2025: Day 1 opens with Tyler, the Creator and a first country headlinerWhile her concert was technically sound, Abrams is an artist who relies on that indoor, intimate, 'headphones on' feeling, and if you had been a more casual or new fan, a good number of songs would start sounding the same. Each bound by her smoky whisper and a hooky plea, that was all you could hear unless you were well-versed on every lyric (to that point, her audience was devoted). About 40 minutes in, after the emotionally devastating 'Death Wish' (a song about narcissists, Abrams said; 'a different kind of pyro,' she joked), an adrenaline boost was critically needed.
Luckily, the set closer 'Close to You' included a surprise appearance from pop icon Robyn, dueting her perfect, eternal classic 'Dancing On My Own' with Abrams, who covered it last time she played Lollapalooza in 2022.
While the crowd reached peak fervor for Abrams, I expected more applause for the Swedish powerhouse. Maybe Gen Z is still learning. In Abrams, they do have a hell of a teacher.
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