As an Asian-American, we used to dream of times like this; where Asian music, let alone representation, became mainstream in the media. Or where K-pop and J-pop were not just a viral trend you see on socials, but rather something you get hooked on from a glimpse of the spectacle presented on television, radio, magazines and elsewhere.

While music festivals have been around for decades in the US, in recent years its popularity only skyrocketed with the inclusion of Asian acts. Music festivals have been a goal for acts to cement a name for themselves in the west. Whether it’s a K-pop group, a Japanese rock band or a Chinese soloist, the inclusivity and representation has come a long way.

As Lollapalooza makes its way across the globe, so does its lineup of acts. This year’s bill carried a hot ticket of heavy hitters from Asia. Its Saturday date makes history, as the show completely sells out with TWICE becoming the main headliner. A first for the festival as many would say. They become the first K-pop girl group to close out the music festival and it’s safe to say they’re the reason behind it. Fellow labelmates Xdinary Heroes also closed out The Grove stage on the first night (Thursday), also marking the official kick off of their US tour. In short, just like many on the bill, it’s been a record-breaking and historical moment in the careers of Asian acts overall.

With many impressive acts on this year’s roster, we caught up with some of the Asian artists backstage last month to discuss their thoughts on being part of such a robust lineup.

Just a night before his US music festival debut, Japanese singer-songwriter Fujii Kaze performed at Chicago’s Vic Theater as part of Lollapalooza’s many aftershows. Selling out in a heartbeat, like his 2024 US stops, the demand for the artist comes to no surprise as his music and his knack for the piano is nothing but a sonic whimsical journey to a listener since his debut in 2019. While he ran on less than eight hours of sleep, his aftershow at The Vic Theater was only a tease of what was to come from his evening set on the Tito’s Stage on Day 3. Performing fan favorites and viral hits like “Matsuri”, “Shinanoga E-Wa”, “Hachiko” and his newly released single “Love Like This”, Fujii captured the crowd with his sass and groovy dance moves.

“I never consider myself as a performer,” the 28 year-old artist confided on a bench backstage after his set. “I'm more like a studio kind of musician. I always thought like that. I was kind of scared and really nervous, and never thought I deserved [that title] at first.“ While he may have performed in theaters, domes, arenas and every size venue once can think of, Kaze stays humble as he makes his US music festival debut. “I grew up with American pop music. I have to show my love for it. Show my love for it and it's an honor. I'm so happy.”

With an album set to release in September, this is only the early stages of Fujii Kaze’s long awaited western takeover. If there’s anything he wanted the Lolla crowd to know about him after the weekend, it’s just he’s a laid back lad that makes music and wants to give it justice.

“I'm just a chill guy from Japan. I'm making good music. Please be kind to each other.”

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KickFlip

Opening up day 3 of the music festival, Kickflip’s Kyehoon, Amaru, Donghwa, Juwang, Minje, Keiju, and Donghyeon brought the energy needed to withstand the heat at the Bud Light stage. Their fun and dynamic choreography meshed with the pop-punk skaterboy vibes were refreshing yet nostalgic as if you were taking a look back at the rebellious days of our youth.

“When we first heard we were going, we were like, ‘What?’” 19-year-old Minje began to recall the beginning of their Lolla journey. “At that point, we just thought we had to practice harder to show a great performance. It was such a great experience for us.”

“It still feels like we’re dreaming,” 19 year-old Donghwa expresses. “This is crazy. Really crazy. We hope that we can do Lollapalooza one more time in the future.”

The seven members were still coming down from cloud nine but in the eyes of the group’s leader, Kyehoon, there was a yearning to go beyond. “I was nervous but the energy was insane. It would be amazing if we could hold a solo concert in front of this many people,” he says.

From the scorching sun beaming down on their heads during “Like A Monster” to the crowds raising their hands up during “Before the Sun Explodes”, Kickflip brought justice to the meaning behind their name and reminded new and old listeners how fun a journey K-pop can be.

Just eight months into their debut, Kickflip may be the youngest on the Lolla roster, but they’re hungry underdogs striving for success with a promising future ahead.

“We hope everyone and WeFlip remember the energy we brought to the stage,” Japanese member Keiju says. “Even if it’s their first time seeing us, we want them to be curious and think, ‘I need to know who they are!’”

wave to earth

At this point in their careers, wave to earth — consisting of singer-songwriter Daniel Kim, bassist John Cha and drummer Dong Kyu Shin — is no stranger to music festivals, let alone Lollapalooza. The group has joined the music festival’s lineup in Brazil, Argentina, India and Chile the past couple of months. It was only a matter of time the waves crashed into the mecca of it all in Chicago.

“Finally,” wave to earth frontman and guitarist Daniel Kim smiles as he recollects when the band found out they’d be a part of the lineup. They were in Korea when it all happened and to this day, it’s a surreal feeling to be able to take on different stops of the music festival in different countries. “We always try to be a part of the global music industry.

With songs like “seasons.”, “daisy.” and “love.”, that have gone viral on social media but also captured the hearts and feels of many, their shows have attracted droves leading them to sell out in a heartbeat. But like their hit “annie.”, the popularity and fame doesn’t phase them. “I’m

just living my life, the three of us need to try to make more music that’s better,” Daniel says. “But when we do these kind of shows, we do kind of feel it,” John adds on right after. “But back in Korea, we spend most of the time in the studio, so that’s why we don’t feel it that much.”

“We’re actually trying to not see our popularity,” Daniel jokes right back.

As the group gets ready for their set hours away from this conversation, Daniel signs off with a wish.

“For music lovers, I hope they’re enjoying it so much that they also love our music too.”

KATSEYE

Arguably one of the most anticipated and well-deserving acts on the Lolla ticket is KATSEYE. Though they did not really debut in Asia, they are a group under HYBE in tandem with Geffen Records. Daniela, Lara, Manon, Megan, Sophia, and Yoonchae made their Lollapalooza debut just a year after their official launch, alongside their captivating performances at KCON 2024 in LA and MAMA Awards. The six-member ensemble proved to be a global girl group force to be reckoned with after releasing hits like “Touch”, “Gnarly” and their recent EP Beautiful Chaos.

“Our team sat us down and we thought we were in trouble and they were like, ‘You’re actually performing at Lollapalooza’ and we all screamed,” leader Sophia Laforteza recalls the moment KATSEYE found out they were doing Lollapalooza.

Just a day before their record-breaking daytime set of 85,000 attendees, the seven-member ensemble were chill and pretty calm backstage until asked how they were. Then reality set in.

“Can I be honest?” Lara immediately answers as she hovers over the mic in Manon’s hand. “I feel like I’m going to sh*t myself. Like I’m literally shaking. (“We’re literally shaking in our boots like you don’t even know!” quickly Sophia interjects.) But I’m also confident, you know? We have practiced and rehearsed so much that I’m confident we’re able to give a good performance and do what we’re supposed to do. It’s just an overwhelming feeling of excitement and gratitude that I don’t know where to place that feeling.”

The group disclosed their road to KATSEYEPALOOZA, or any huge performance, rather, includes lots of water and using face masks. And all of this is just a tease of what’s to come in the fall as the group embarks on an all sold out US tour in the fall.

“We’re only now getting into the tour mindset,” Manon closes out. “We want everyone here to know how fire a KATSEYE performance is and how much energy KATSEYE will give you.”

“Period!” the other five members say simultaneously around her.

BOYNEXTDOOR

Debuting in 2023 under KOZ Entertainment, BOYNEXTDOOR — consisting of Jaehyun, Sungho, Riwoo, Taesan, Leehan, and Woonhak — embraces the concept of being your boy next door with a fun, musical twist. Songs like “One and Only” and “Earth, Wind & Fire” are arguably some of this generation’s K-pop earworms that helped them with their rapid rise. The group is another act who follows the KCON LA to Lolla pipeline; participating in the biggest Korean culture convention and concert in 2024 to becoming a prime daytime performer at the Lakeshore Stage on Day 4 of Lollapalooza this year. If there’s anything more to say about that, it’s that these boys are here to stay.

It’s Day 3 of Lollapalooza and the six members swing by for press right after dominating the House of Blues for an aftershow in the morning. No sign of exhaustion in sight. As a matter of fact, they’re hyped to finally be on site at Grant Park.

“The energy is too, too strong, so before we hit the stage,” leader Jaehyun says, as the group catches up with tmrw a day before their Lollapalooza debut. They’re not nervous at all. They’re excited and hyped, especially when they’re excited to see acts like Doechii and Fujii Kaze on the same day. “I have to tell them, ‘Hey guys, we have to calm down.” But there’s honestly no need when it comes to a music festival like Lollapalooza where thousands of music lovers gather to discover new music and enjoy it with others.

“It’s such an honor,” Leehan expresses gratitude. “Since KCON, we recently wrapped our tour as well. We had a lot of shows, met with a lot of different fans, and every time we went up on a stage, there's something that we came back down learning, and that's how to express our energy. So we're gonna take everything we have learned so far. Are and just unleash ourselves.”

While they may not be nervous for tomorrow, there is still some pressure to be felt and take into consideration.

“I think we have to take pressure, because fans give us a lot of love,” Jaehyun eloquently says. “So we have to keep our thing going, and that's the artist’s responsibility. So we always have to keep doing better amongst ourselves.” “I think one thing BOYNEXTDOOR has where we can outshine all other artists here is teamwork,” Taesan piggybacks on to what the group’s leader just said. “We are so good at locking eyes on stages and making sure we perform with one united heart. That's something, a charm that K-pop also has. So we'll do our best tomorrow to get that message across.”