The “pulse of Black Chicago,” Afrotrak, presented on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020 The Drive-In Fest at the Soldier Field parking lot in Chicago.
The millennial R&B event was headlined by Lloyd and featured Pleasure P, Bobby V, and Chicago native Josh K. The Drive-In Fest continues a trend of concerts being held in parking lots during this time of COVID-19. The first event of this kind was held earlier in the month featuring DaBaby in the Chicago suburb of Hazel Crest.
The Chicago skyline was the backdrop for the evening.
Music filled the atmosphere as fans essentially had a great time from the comfort of their parking space with family and friends. The practice of social distancing was a reminder throughout the night and didn’t seem to put a damper on the festivities. It does take some getting used to but when the music got started that was all that mattered.
Rolling out asked the founder and creative director of Afrotrak, Mike Orie, why it was important to produce The Drive-In Fest and what kind of feedback his team received.
“Our team, Afrotrak, Civilized Lifestyle and Sigma Chris, wanted to provide a quality event for our culture. 2020 has been an interesting year for all of us. We wanted to provide a moment of healing through music. [It was] something positive for folks to remember, specifically Chicago, in the midst of everything that’s been going on. When our attendees look back at 2020, we hope The Drive-In Fest [will] at least be one positive moment for them to remember. We’ve received mostly positive feedback and several requests to do it again,” said Orie.