CheekyChicago

Never before in Lollapalooza history has a band – headliners included – gotten to play for two and a half hours. Lady Gaga was the first to be allowed more than 90 minutes on the main stage, performing a two hour set. However, walking on stage at 7:45 pm and not walking off stage until 10:15 pm is unheard of. “They told us they were going to pull the plug on us at 10 pm if we did not stop playing. But I told them: We are going to play for however the f*ck long we want to play,” frontman Billie Joe Armstrong told the crowd of more than 80,000 people when Green Day headlined day two of Lollapalooza.

SET LIST

Song Of The Century

21st Century Breakdown

Know Your Enemy

East Jesus Nowhere

Holiday

Letterbomb

Give Me Novocaine

Are We The Waiting

St. Jimmy

Boulevard Of Broken Dreams

Nice Guys Finish Last

2000 Light Years Away

Hitchin’ A Ride

When I Come Around

Sweet Child O’ Mine / Highway To Hell (cover medley)

Brain Stew

Jaded

Longview

Basket Case

She

King For A Day

Shout / My Kind Of Town / (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction / Hey Jude (medley)

21 Guns

Minority

ENCORE

American Idiot

Jesus Of Suburbia

She’s A Rebel

Wake Me Up When September Ends

Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)

Green Day played a seemingly endless set heavily filled with American Idiot tracks, leaving fans begging for more. “This song is dedicated to everybody who came from a small f*cked up town,” exclaimed Armstrong seconds before strumming the opening four chords of “Jesus Of Suburbia.” Personally, the highlight of the night came when Green Day performed the one song I have never heard them play live before: “When I Come Around.” Genuine shock mixed with intense gratitude is how I describe what I felt upon hearing Armstrong grind out one of my favorite Green Day guitar riffs. So simple. So memorable.

The highlight of the evening for the band came when Armstrong screwed up the lyrics for “She’s A Rebel.” Green Day rarely, if ever, plays the tune live. But with the lyric “from Chicago to Toronto,” how could the guys not include it in their set? Witnessing Armstrong make a mistake while on stage was a first for me. “And I just f*cked up the lyrics,” sang the mastermind songwriter upon realizing his error.

For one lucky fan, the highlight of the night was being chosen to join the trio on Lolla’s main stage to sing every word of “Longview” from beginning to end. Not wanting go home with any regrets, the guy went balls to the wall and laid a lingering lip-locking kiss on Billie Joe, who was clearly this fan’s hero. When his five minutes of fame were up, the superfan was given Armstrong’s electric guitar. Though not audible to the rest of us fans fuming with envy, “I love you” was what we saw the fanatic say to Armstrong while receiving a hug from his idol.