Ten years into its reign in Union Park, the Pitchfork Music Festival is still booking diverse lineups packed with artists that we actually want to see. This year's mix of indie legends (Wilco, Sleater Kinney), hip hop heavyweights (Chance the Rapper, Run the Jewels) and new blood (Viet Cong, Natalie Prass) puts Pitchfork firmly at the top of Chicago's considerable summer festival heap.
Chicago has a problem: There are too many summer festivals. We're not complaining, just stating the obvious. Not only do Chicago's parks play host to some of the best music festivals in the world, the city's street festivals also boast lineups that seem too good to be true. In short, we're spoiled. We pored over the best events featuring live music this summer and came up with this (less-than-scientific) ranking of Chicago's summer music festivals. From gigantic, multi-stage events to street festivals with sick lineups, here are our top picks.
