New Year's Eve is just over five weeks away, which means it's time to decide which party you'll be attending. One option is the inaugural Chi-Town Rising, a free, outdoor New Year's Eve celebration that will take place along the river between Michigan Avenue and Columbus Drive. While attendees wait for the 70-foot-tall star to be hoisted up the side of the Hyatt Regency Chicago at midnight, they'll be treated to musical entertainment spread across three stages.
Today, organizers announced two acts who will perform on the event's main stage, which will be in front of the Hyatt Regency. Long-running soft rockers Chicago (the band, obviously) will close out the evening, right after a set from pop-rock act American Authors. A mainstay of easy-listening radio and your dad's record collection, Chicago (which features four original members) was recently nominated for induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Brooklyn band American Authors is best known for its song "Best Day of My Life"—you've heard it if you've watched commercials within the past year. Performances by both bands will be included in the Chi-Town Rising TV special, which will be broadcast locally on NBC 5 and Telemundo Chicago.
If your New Year's Eve tradition already included listening to "25 or 6 to 4," you might as well go stand out in the cold and watch Chicago play it live.