Lollapalooza’s ninth event in Germany took place last weekend with a bright and sunny two days at Olympiastadion Berlin. Huge crowds traveled from all over Europe and the world for this 2024’s massive lineup that included Burna Boy, Seventeen, Sam Smith, Louis Tomlinson and so much more.
Attendees also had plenty to explore between sets with activations for fashion, food and wellness throughout the stadium grounds. Fans could be spotted partying at the Coke Studio and dancing to EDM inside at the Perry’s Stage, grabbing a massive pretzel at every turn and taking photos at the multiple Instagram-worthy spots and photobooths.
Atlas traveled across the ocean to be in the middle of all the action- check out the best moments from day one!
German Artists Take the Spotlight
Lollapalooza Berlin had an enormous undercard of artists from around the world, but they put the spotlight firmly on German talent early in the day. Raum27 drew fans to the Alternative Stage to sweat it out at their afternoon dance party. Singer Tristan Stadtler paused repeatedly to grin at the audience and the duo radiated joy across the lawn as the set continued. They made the most of their brief timeslot and worked up a sweat right alongside their fans.
Later in the afternoon, popular German group Jeremias brought their indie pop sensibilities to the Main Stage North to an audience of all ages ready to sing along. The enormous stage was bathed in blue lighting as the band emerged in pastel outfits that perfectly encompassed the sunny vibes of the first day.
Singer Jeremias Heimbach began the set on top of the risers at the back of the stage and never stopped moving throughout their performance. The band sings primarily in German but even fans who don’t understand the language perfectly understand the emotions captured within these songs. The band’s magnetism drew in more and more people as their set continued and they capped off the afternoon performances.
Louis Tomlinson Mania at Golden Hour
Undoubtedly one of the most anticipated acts of day one was Louis Tomlinson. The former One Directioner has been making his way through the festival circuit this summer, adding Lollapalooza to the mix and delighting German fans who queued at the stage for hours to see him up close. Golden hour lent its soft light to the stadium as Tomlinson arrived, sending the crowd into a frenzy of cheers. The star lets his music do the talking, telling his story through “The Greatest”, and “We Made It”.
Fans were moved to tears as the performance progressed, the cameras highlighting the passion in the crowd and on the stage. Tomlinson even dusted off One Direction classics “Drag Me Down” and “Where Do Broken Hearts Go”, eliciting impassioned singing from every corner of the venue. Those who had waited all day for this set danced with vigor to “Face the Music” and swayed tearfully to “Saturdays”- a song that Tomlinson finds difficult to perform without sentiment overwhelming him. His time onstage concluded with “Silver Tongues” as the community finally dispersed after a thoroughly fulfilling time spent with their favorite guy.
OneRepublic Closes Out Saturday with “Lolla Karaoke”
Though OneRepublic doesn’t take their show on the road as much these days, their Main Stage North headlining slot made perfect sense for the sheer number of hits in their discography. Singer Ryan Tedder promised a night of familiar favorites, but first treated the audience to some new tracks at the top of the set.
Then it was right to the radio-ready bangers as the band blasted through “Stop and Stare”, “Good Life” and “Love Runs Out”. As we reached the middle of the performance, Tedder paused the OneRepublic tunes and performed snippets of songs he’s written for other artists over his career. With his ceiling-shattering rang, he tackled Beyonce’s “Halo”, Leona Lewis’ “Bleeding Love” and Tate McRae’s “Greedy” (saying it was a “bad idea” for a grown man to play the song on piano) practically in the same breath.
“Apologize” was the track that made this band famous and with thousands of people still singing along, its staying power remains cemented. The set- and the night- ended with “I Lived” and “Counting Stars” for a touching conclusion to a fabulous first day.
Lollapalooza Berlin fully delivered the goods for Saturday’s event and fans exited the stadium buzzing about their excitement for day two. The organization of this year’s festival ensured that attendees came first, with water being passed out to those on the barricade, medical and security personnel at the ready and a tiered barricade system in place at the larger stages to prevent dangerous overcrowding. Fans couldn’t have asked for a better start to the weekend- and it was on to day two!
