Finn Wolfhard Makes Solo Lollapalooza Debut, Trading the Upside Down for Indie Rock on Chicago’s Airbnb Stage

Finn Wolfhard, best known as a star of Stranger Things, took a step away from acting over the weekend to try on a different role: festival frontman.

Finn Wolfhard stepped onto Lollapalooza’s Airbnb Stage on Friday afternoon for his first-ever solo festival set, trading the Upside Down for a sunny Chicago main-stage adjacent slot. Backed by a six-piece band that layered keys, lap steel, fiddle, and drums into his sound, the 23-year-old delivered a 45-minute stretch of Midwest indie folk and neo-country-tinged rock drawn from his recent solo albums Happy Birthday and Fire From the Hip.

He opened with the Rolling Stones-flavored “I’ll Let You Finish,” slipped in a warm cover of Faces’ “Ooh La La,” and worked through tracks like “Nice To Meet You Again,” “Common Side Effects,” “Follow,” and “Trailers After Dark,” foot-stomping and switching instruments with easy energy.

The crowd started loud—plenty of fangirl screams for the former Stranger Things star—but thinned as the mid-tempo, reflective material played out, a reminder that his current sound sits more comfortably in smaller rooms than a festival field. Wolfhard kept the banter sparse, offering a simple “There’s not much to say but thanks for coming out” and a casual nudge for people to jump around.

Still, the set underscored his deep Chicago connections (much of his recent music was recorded with local collaborators) and confirmed what reviews have been saying: the kid’s a genuine music nerd who’s finally claiming the stage under his own name.

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