Honestly... I'm outraged.
This is the ultimate dilemma for the IU student who just happens to have a 4 day pass to Lollapalooza this year.
Someone made the grave mistake of scheduling your favorite bro's favorite trashcan music man at the same time as your favorite bro's favorite philanthropic gospel rapper.
Mac DeMarco and Chance the Rapper will be playing dueling headlining sets on opposite sides of Lollapalooza tonight.
Having been to shows by both artists, I can make an argument for and against seeing both of them, so that's exactly what I'm going to do now.
I've seen Mac DeMarco live three times in three very different settings. I saw him at Culture Shock several years ago, Bonnaroo 2015, and Metro in Chicago. Every single time DeMarco and his gang of musical degenerates absolutely blew my mind. I've never walked away unimpressed by him. He is probably one of the grungiest men I've ever seen in my life, but everything he plays is so authentic and genuinely good. He's unapologetically himself and it's intoxicating. His shows are rowdy with lots of crowdsurfing, dancing, and jumping off of balconies (I witnessed him do this at Metro and I was more scared for his life than I have ever been for my own). However, if you attend a Mac DeMarco show you're guaranteed to get at least one cheap beer spilled on your shoes, accidentally pushed into a mosh pit, and hear at least three bros scream "play 'Chamber of Reflection'". Knowing all of this you have to ask yourself if it's worth it.
I have only seen Chance once and it was at Bonnaroo this summer, arguably the time of peak of his career thus far. I was absolutely blown away. Being a huge hip hop fan, and a long time fan of Chance, I was brought to tears several times. It honestly was a spiritual experience and I left feeling like I had just completed four years of intense therapy. His vocals are incredible, his positive and grateful vibe is infectious, and his setlist is damn near flawless. There are two terrible things about a Chance set, especially at a festival: 1. White girls suddenly feel that they now have permission to scream "the n word" whenever they feel like it which makes me sick to my stomach every time and 2. People seemingly have not listened to Chance's Coloring Book because they feel the need to complain that he isn't "hype" and "talks too much about God".
For me... the choice is obvious. As a hip hop head I will be at Chance the Rapper, but it will break my heart to miss Mac DeMarco.
