Hooligan Picks: Artists to See at Pitchfork 2024
Hooligan is on-site this year at Pitchfork Fest again (our favorite time of year!) and we came together to hand-pick our must see performances of the weekend. Scroll down to see this years choices, and enter our Instagram Giveaway today for your chance to score a pair of Friday guest passes! Two winners will be chosen and notified at 9PM CST.
Rivka’s pick
Tkay Maidza
Friday | Red stage
3:20 PM
Tkay Maidza makes music for a perfect Friday afternoon, with smoke in the air and the smell of festival food wafting past. She brings an infectious energy, igniting a party to kick off Pitchfork weekend. Combining uplifting club-inspired beats with smooth R&B vocals and rapping, Tkay Maidza is a set you take a cutie to for some mid-day dancing.
Heath’s pick
Yaeji
Friday | Red Stage
5:15-6:10
One of the most impressive things an artist can do is bring a fresh twist to a genre, and Yaeji does that skillfully, with her latest album With A Hammer. The album feels much more experimental than her past work, fusing multiple genres together in a way you may not be familiar with if you’re a fan of her hits such as “Raingurl” or “Guap”. However, if you listen to her single off of the album For Granted, it feels like you’re having a conversation with her about the growth she’s experiencing as a means to creating her album. It’s a new twist on the already unique sound she’s created for herself since 2017, and it’s a welcome one that you’re going to want to see her recreate on stage.
Bella’s Pick
Sudan Archives
Friday | Blue Stage
6:30PM
This set is possibly my most anticipated of the weekend. From the moment the lineup was released I have not been able to contain my excitement. Sudan Archives is a self-taught violinist that effortlessly blends elements of R&B and experimental electronic music together to create introspective, sweeping, often frantic and explosive soundscapes. On "NBPQ (Topless)" from her 2022 album Natural Brown Prom Queen, she affirms: "I'm not average, I'm not average, I'm not average," and it could not be more true. I truly cannot wait to get to see her work her magic in real life. You are just not going to see anything else like this all weekend.
Rivka’s pick
Kara Jackson
Saturday | Green stage
2:30PM
Kara Jackson’s voice will lull you into a daydream. Her lyrics will make you laugh, say mmmm, and sometimes cry. She is a Chicago gift, a poetic musician with the kind of cadence that Nina Simone once brought to the stage. She is someone you do not want to sleep on or miss. Let her folky melodies hug you tight enough to keep you inspired for the rest of your Saturday.
Bella’s Pick
Wednesday
Saturday | Green Stage
4:15PM
Pitchfork-goers, I cannot express to you how lucky we are to be one of the few US stops on Wednesday's 2024 touring schedule. This gritty, fuzzy, downright weird, alternative-rock-almost-country-sometimes band from Asheville is an absolute do not miss on your Saturday schedule. Whether you come for frontwoman Karly Hartzman's striking storytelling and emotive wailing, or for the fest's 2023 alum MJ Lenderman holding down the guitar, or just to see why Pitchfork awarded their last record Rat Saw God Best New Music and declared them "one of the best indie rock bands around," you simply must gather to bear witness.
Heath’s pick
Jessie Ware
Saturday | Green Stage
6:15PM
Jessie Ware is nothing short of incredible. Her most recent album, That! Feels Good!, was released last year and was given an 8.3 rating by Pitchfork. This is personally no surprise to me, as I saw her in 2022 as the opening act for Harry Styles and was in awe the entire time. Her powerhouse vocals combined with elements of disco within this newest album is also something that you do not want to miss out on. You will dance reminiscent in ways reminiscent of Saturday Night Fever and be left wanting more and more after seeing just how captivating she is on stage. This is a must see act!
Heath’s pick
Akenya
Sunday | Green Stage
1:00PM
If you’re someone that loves being at the forefront of “discovering” an artist before they blow up, I have just the act for you - Akenya. Her upcoming debut LP Moon in the 4th is something I’m personally looking forward to, her vocals are smooth like butter on her lead single “Hades Moon” and I can only imagine what else there is to look forward to. Her background in music is nothing short of spectacular, and Hayley Williams has claimed that she is “one of the best singers I’ve heard in my whole life”. Let that be all the proof you need - Akenya is a performer that you don’t want to miss.
Bella’s pick
Mannequin Pussy
Sunday | Blue stage
5:15pm
Every year, there's a set in the middle of Sunday that restores the energy and morale that I have been drained of entirely in the festival chaos, and this year that slot is filled by the phenomenal Mannequin Pussy. Their most recent record I Got Heaven is one of my favorites of the year so far, packing 30 minutes full to the brim with aggression and anger and catharsis. Frontwoman Missy Dabice's screams and shouts propel the record forward at light speed and take you through the entire spectrum of human emotion along the way, and I am shaking with anticipation at getting to hear her voice rip through the vicinity of the Blue stage. This is gonna be a fun one.
Rivka’s pick
Brittany Howard
Sunday | Red Stage
7:25PM
Sunday is for the girls, non-binary lesbians and twinks! With Muna on just beforehand at the Green stage, the queers will be high on gay love and flocking to the Red Stage for an evening serenade from Brittany Howard. Expect to be reignited with energy and pure joy as the sun goes down and Brittany Howard’s bold + beautiful voice combined with funky guitar solos melts your troubles away. Find someone to hold hands with and revel in joy, even if it is just for this moment.