Summer Smash 2026 kicked off on Friday (June 12) at the grounds surrounding Seatgeek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois. The festival, created by SPKRBX and Lyrical Lemonade, has build a reputation as one of the premier rap-heavy fests in the U.S.
50,000 fans filled the festival grounds for day one, which was a picture perfect, sunny, 80-degree day about 15 miles outside of Chicago.
It was an eclectic group on day one, which included vets like Riff Raff along with newcomers like Molly Santana, Nettspend and Pradabagshawty continuing to prove why they could be leaders of the next generation.
Chief Keef and G Herbo displayed their connection with Chicago as drill pioneers and trailblazers for the 2010s in the city. Sexyy Red made America Sexyy again, and North West hit the stage for her festival debut with a 15-minute set inside the tent.
Lil Uzi Vert delivered as the night one headliner, showcasing a rock star ability many of his peers think they have, but only a few actually hold at the moment. There were plenty of Chicago sports luminaries sprinkled throughout the crowd, with Chicago Bears teammates Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze in attendance.
Night two will find headlining performances from Skrillex, Yung Lean and Baby Keem, while Lil Baby and Playboi Carti will hold down Sunday to bring the festival across the finish line.
With day two well underway, here were our top five moments from day one of Summer Smash 2026.
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Lil Uzi Vert Teases Unreleased Music & New Album
Lil Uzi Vert didn’t want to leave the stage shortly after 11 p.m. CT and attempted to stretch out their headlining set as much as they could. Before closing up shop, Uzi left fans with a teaser about his next LP. “New album on the way,” Uzi said. “I gotta get home and take care of my baby monkey.” An unreleased Uzi song played as fans left the Seatgeek Stadium grounds, which found the Philly rapper debuting a British accent on the track.
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Sexyy Red Crashes Chief Keef’s Set
Sexyy Red doesn’t play when it comes to Chief Keef, as she loves her some Sosa. Big Sexyy performed at the main stage just before Sosa and the St. Louis rapper crashed Chief Keef’s set. They performed their Mike Will Made-It-produced “DAMN SHORTY” collaboration as Sexyy twerked on Sosa, and the chemistry was evident. Maybe they are more than friends?
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Molly Santana, the New Hannah Montana
Molly Santana followed North West with a set inside Summer Smash’s tent stage. She built off her ICEMAN momentum by performing the live debut of her “Ran to Atlanta” collaboration with Future and Drake alongside a giant panda. Molly continues to elevate, and her new single “Can’t Touch This” finds her dabbling more in ATL trap than her typical rage rap sound.
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North West’s Festival Debut
North West, aka Ms. Westy, made her festival debut with an official slot inside the tent at Summer Smash 2026. Rocking teal blue hair, massive sunglasses and a Balenciaga top, North packed out the stage as fans were curious at what kind of performance the 12-year-old was going to deliver.
She passed the test while running through cuts from her N0rth4evr EP and Vultures’ “Talking,” where North teamed up with her father, Ye. Even Lil Wayne’s son, Lil Novi, crashed the set for a rap royalty family tree moment.
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Chief Keef Comes Home & Brings the City With Him
Chief Keef returned to Chicago for his first performance in the area surrounding the city at Summer Smash 2024 as a special guest, and this year Sosa was back with his own set as the penultimate performer on the main stage.
He brought the city outside with him. No, actually, there might have been 100 people on stage with Sosa. The Chicago drill pioneer ran through the classics like “Faneto,” “Don’t Like” and “Love Sosa,” and had some special guests help power his memorable set, including fellow Chitown native G Herbo and Sexyy Red.
