Review: Gracie Abrams steps into the spotlight with flawless Lollapalooza performance
Gracie Abrams had two words when she saw the amount of people that had gathered for her performance on Thursday night: “Holy sh--!”
Vying for the largest crowd of the weekend so far — and arguably the largest crowd of Abrams’ relatively short career — the sea of bodies that came together at the T-Mobile Stage was a far cry from when the singer-songwriter appeared at the fest in 2022 on the more modest Discord Stage.
“This looks and feels a lot different,” she said, calling the scene on this night, “the craziest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”
There was one other big upgrade from three years ago: Instead of just covering her “favorite song of all time,” Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own,” the Swedish pop star crashed the set for a surprise duet. It was the perfect nightcap on a flawless set that had Abrams volleying from acoustic to electric and piano, cementing her status as a main draw, no longer just a go-to supporting act.
Three years ago, she was opening up for Olivia Rodrigo on the Sour Tour, but this weekend, Abrams (recently named the American Music Awards’ New Artist of the Year) was playing in the same league. A few nights ago, she also made her debut at Madison Square Garden.
Lolla has really embraced the singer-songwriter, indie pop, country and alt-country community this year, and Abrams was a natural fit. Her effervescent indie folk and diary pop bring the cachet of Taylor Swift (Abrams opened up the Eras Tour, too), but what differentiates Abrams’ just-as-juicy songbook is a moody edge and a breathiness on songs like “Where Do We Go Now?” that feel reminiscent of Kate Bush.
There were even moments Thursday when Abrams’ internal poet found moments of improv. Noticing a bout of pyrotechnics from the other side of the park, she commented, “We don’t have pyro at our shows but we have this next song [‘Death Wish’] about a narcissist. I guess that’s a different kind of pyro that blows up your life.”
It’s that kind of sharp wit and authenticity that has resonated so deeply with Abrams’ Gen Z-heavy fanbase, who came armed with posters and phones held high and ate up Abrams’ every lyric and spit it back out it in voluminous singalongs on songs like “Free Now” and “That’s So True.”
By the end of the set, Abrams said what everyone else was thinking: “I’ll never forget this day. Thank you so much.”
Gracie Abrams’ Lollapalooza 2025 set list
Risk
Blowing Smoke
21
I Love You, I'm Sorry
Where Do We Go Now?
I Told You Things
Mess It Up
Let It Happen
Death Wish
I Miss You, I'm Sorry
Free Now
That's So True
Close To You
Dancing On My Own (Robyn Cover, With Robyn)