How Lollapalooza Sponsorships Form Their Own Headline Show

That’s where sponsors like Revlon, Bud Light, HBO, Red Bull, Chipotle, Citi and Refinery29 will set up a series of pop-up destinations for brand activations that last among the approximately 100,000 daily Lolla attendees long after the final act has played its encore.

Courtney Trucksess has been with C3 Presents for nearly 20 years, currently as director, sponsorship and marketing, and witnessed a tremendous growth in sponsorships and brand participation since its involvement with the Chicago alternative festival launched with two nights in 2005.

“We expect our partners to bring something super-elevated, unique to the festival,” she says. “We seek out brands that we think best fit our demo and fans. We don’t just take any check. We try to find sponsors to provide an alternative for fans to just standing by the stage listening to music.”

Revlon becomes Lollapalooza’s first major beauty brand this year, setting up Ultra Rollerama, a skating rink on site to promote (and pass out) its vinyl lip polish. 

“Everything worked perfectly together,” says Trucksess. “They’re bringing over a female DJ from the lineup to play a surprise set, along with influencers. I think it will resonate tremendously with our audience.”

Other installations include the Red Bull Outpost, a two-story gaming kiosk center offering fans a chance to compete with local online celebrity Ninja, an authentic Bud Light dive bar, the Toyota Music Den and a gender equality initiative courtesy of Citi and women’s lifestyle site Refinery29.

The partner sponsors are like the side show at the carnival, an adjunct to the main event, but also offering amenities and other activities that complement and work hand-in-hand with the musical acts. The combination results in a singularly memorable experience, one perhaps more interactive and engaging than  watching a show onstage.

“We can’t provide all that alone,” says Trucksess. “That’s where the sponsor can come in and offer the opportunity to interact directly with the consumer face-to-face, by building relationships that they might not have as a bank, a beer or a beauty product.”

The idea of music and festival sponsorships has grown since the days of Jovan Musk underwriting the Rolling Stones tour in 1981 when Schlitz beer dropped out at the last minute. 

“In the early days of Lolla and even Austin City Limits, the company really did rely on sponsorship revenue to keep the ticket prices lower,” she explained.  

This year, HBO is setting up an air-conditioned tent to promote their new comedy, The Righteous Gemstones, about fundamentalist preachers with John Goodman and Danny McBride, while Chipotle will have their own pop-up restaurant serving menu items.

Trucksess says Lollapalooza’s alternative roots make the issue of sponsorships and branding a tricky one to navigate. “We’ve been really careful about the brands we work with.  There have been brands that approach us and we’ve had to say no in a polite way because we didn’t think it would be good for the Lollapalooza brand, the fans or the potential partner. We try to be really, really diligent about that. We have an incredible renewal rate.”

One of those longtime partners is Citi, which this year is sponsoring a gender equality initiative, and a promise to reflect that in their marketing campaigns through teaming up with the Association of National Advertisers for #SeeHerHearHer, part of the #SeeHer movement to directly address those biases in music. Mentoring sessions with artists like Maren Morris and Charli XCX are also being offered as part of the program to aspiring female artists.

“That arose out of our discussions with [Citi Global Consumer Chief Marketing Officer] Jennifer Breithaupt, who’s been with Lolla since day one,” says Trucksess. “She’s probably living the banking version of the music industry as one of its few high-ranking women. This is a good way to get some real meaningful conversations going.”

To that end, Citi and Refinery29 are setting up a back-of-house “content studio,” a bungalow within the Artist Village designed for performers and industry executives to discuss the importance of achieving gender equality moving to the future.

“Hopefully, we can build some awareness that will result in some meaningful change,” says Trucksess. The key to the sponsorships, according to Trucksess, is what the partners and brands take away from the event in terms of consumer engagement, brand activation and contacts that last long after the final note is played at Lollapalooza.

“We want our partners to walk away with that extra-added value,” she says. “So three months from now, that fan will remember the lip gloss they got from Revlon at Lolla while skating at the Ultra Rollerama.”

As branding and sponsorships continue to grow, Trucksess says Lollapalooza isn’t likely to take a cue from stadium naming rights and offer up its title to a corporate partner.

“I never say never because things change over the years, but at this point, I don’t think the festival needs it.” 

Since taking over the festival in 2005, C3 Presents’ Trucksess has seen sponsorships climb to where it’s a significant element in the event’s financial success.

“If you look at how the size of the festival and the brand has grown, sponsorship has grown right alongside it,” she concludes. “It’s a much bigger percentage than it was. We have continued to increase our revenue number every year.”