Suenos Music Festival kicks off in Grant Park

The bass from “La Chona” by Los Tucanes de Tijuana could be heard from blocks away as Dj Fredy Fresco asked the crowd, “Are you ready to see Kali Uchis and J Balvin tonight?” from the main stage at Suenos Music Festival on Saturday.

Day one of the festival kicked off Saturday as the sun shone down on Grant Park, with temps in the mid-60s and a subtle breeze swept over the park. Now in its fifth year, the Memorial Day Weekend event is a celebration of Latin music and culture. Last year, headliners Shakira and Don Omar attracted more than 80,000 attendees over two days.

By early afternoon, thousands of fans streamed through the festival gates, immediately greeted by planted flags from Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico and other Latin American countries, stopping by a tall art installation with names of different countries written on it to take pictures in front of. The smells of morning pastries filled the air while fans ate mini waffles with strawberries and fudge, accompanied with micheladas in hand. Some had traveled from as far as Texas and New York; others were Chicago locals eager to see their favorite artists in their hometown.

“Right now the song I have on repeat is ‘Muévelo’ by Kali Uchis,” said local festivalgoer Gabby Godinez. “I’m so excited to see her.”

The Colombian American singer-songwriter clearly was an inspiration on this year’s festival fashion, with pink being the color so many fans were wearing. Lace corset tops, mini skirts with long frilled layers and rhinestones dominated the outfits on the park grounds.

Dancing was seen throughout Suenos’ three stages: the Suenos Main Stage, La Plaza and La Fuente. Roger Morales, whose DJ name is AYKID, opened the La Fuente stage, located near the entrance, at 11 a.m. “To share the weekend with artists I love, that was a full-circle moment,” he said.

Morales had previously covered Chicago music festivals as a multimedia journalist for the Chicago Tribune. “You’re taking photos one day, seeing people on stage, a couple years later, the hustle pays off and you end up seeing yourself on stage, that’s a dream come true. That’s what Suenos is about.”

Since launching in 2022, Sueños — which translates to “dreams” in English — has become one of Chicago’s marquee summer festivals, helping cement the city as a major destination for Latin music.

As the clouds drew closer to Grant Park, fans danced around the main stage to artists Elena Rose, De La Rose and Paulo Londra, enjoying every moment that brought them closer to the headlining acts.

On a picture-perfect Saturday afternoon, Suenos is living up to its name.