Wilco front man Jeff Tweedy to headline annual ‘Chicago Live!’ performing arts festival at Navy Pier

CHICAGO — Wilco front man Jeff Tweedy will headline this year’s ‘Chicago Live!’ a free annual performing arts festival returning to the Navy Pier in September.

Chicago Live! exclusively features performances from Chicago-based and Chicago-grown artists across five stages at the Navy Pier over two days.

Organizers say this year’s event will be the largest yet and will feature performances from 111 different groups and artists.

Tweedy is set to kick off this year’s event with a solo acoustical set on the first evening of the festival.

“Chicago’s lakefront is one of my favorite places on earth and I’ll jump at any opportunity to play on its shores,” Tweedy said.

According to organizers, Tweedy’s performance at the festival will be his only solo concert to take place in the Chicago area this summer.

“Jeff Tweedy’s songs have been reaching fans across multiple genres for decades in ways that are both deeply personal and collectively shared,” Arnie Rivera, the Chief Administrative and Equity Officer for Navy Pier, said in a press release on Wednesday morning. “As a person and a performer, he embodies the spirit and inclusivity of Chicago Live! and we could not be more delighted to welcome him to this year’s festival.”

Chicago Live! Launched in 2021 as a way to reconnect audiences with the local performing arts community following a year-and-a-half of venue closures sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The annual event is supported by the Pritzker Foundation and Peoples Gas.

This year’s event will take place over two days, on Saturday, Sept. 21, and Sunday, Sept. 22.

Visit the Navy Pier website for more information or to view a full list of artists set to perform at the upcoming event.

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