Lollapalooza Chicago forecast: When to expect rain, sun, potential severe weather

Lollapalooza 2024 is underway in Chicago, and it begins with a threat of severe weather.

Here’s the breakdown of the weather forecast for the event through the weekend. Keep in mind, temperatures will be higher in Chicago's suburbs, farther away from Lake Michigan. This forecast specifically focuses on Grant Park, where Lollapalooza takes place.

THURSDAY: This looks like the worse-weather evening for Lolla. Humid, a few isolated showers or storms around northeast Illinois prior to 7 p.m. with temperatures in the mid-80s. More numerous scattered storms develop after 7 p.m. through 11 p.m. Some of these storms could have damaging gusts, small hail and heavy rain. You can track these storms coming out of Wisconsin in our NBC 5 app.

FRIDAY: Starts out rocky with showers and a few non-severe storms in the morning. The chance of lightning will get lower going into the afternoon, but some showers could hang around Chicago through 2 p.m. or 3 p.m. before clearing out. Once the rain does exit in the early to mid-afternoon hours, it stays dry the rest of the evening. You may also feel the humidity getting lower through Friday evening with some northeast gusts around 20 mph. Temperatures stay in the upper 70s in the afternoon and drop to the low- to mid-70s by 9 p.m. Looks like a great night.

SATURDAY: No rain! Bright day with highs in the low 80s. It will still be a little humid but not oppressive, so it could feel a couple degrees hotter than the air temp. A light lake breeze will feel nice when it picks up 10-15 mph. Stay hydrated under the sun. Temperatures drop to the low- to mid-70s by 9 p.m. with mostly clear skies after sunset.

SUNDAY: Still bright in the afternoon with increasing clouds toward the evening. Right now, rain is not expected, but there have been a couple hints at a few showers developing after sunset, so stay tuned for any changes. It will be a degree or two hotter than Saturday with highs in the low- to mid-80s. It will also still be slightly humid with dew points in the mid-to-upper 60s, so stay hydrated. We’ll get a nice lake breeze but only around 5 to 15 mph.