For as much as I didn’t want to deal with the crowds and the heat and wasn’t necessarily overly excited about the line-up at this year’s Lollapalooza festival, I still had FOMO (fear of missing out) from all the pictures I saw on Instagram and Facebook. Funny how that happens.

Lollapalooza 2015 photo: Windy City Blogger Collective

The cool thing is I actually got to experience Lollapalooza in my own special way and I have to say it was awesome! I’m SO doing it again this way next year (that is unless I’m super excited to see some of the bands, then I might just spring for the actual ticket).

So what exactly did I do this year that was so different? I only attended the after-parties! And they were pretty damn cool. And at really nice places with air conditioning. And attended by people who showered (well, there are always a few exceptions to the rule).

On Friday night at the newly renovated Renaissance Hotel in downtown Chicago, Billboard alongside BMF Media hosted the Music Lounge 10 Years after-party. The artists Wet, Jidenna and G-Eazy all took the stage as we danced and sipped the night away. I was really blown away by the group Wet and loved their chilled out music and vibe. A definite new fan here.

Music Lounge 10 Years Powered By Billboard and BMF Media

Wet Performing At Lollapalooza After-Party

And on Saturday night, the Hard Rock Hotel partnered with Culture Collide to put on a fantastic after-party featuring Bleachers, Yawn and DJ Lani Love. I had never heard the music of Bleachers (the headliner’s of the after-party) and I was immediately a groupie. They even sang their own rendition of The Cranberries’ popular hit “Dreams” which was fun to sing along to and definitely got the crowd involved and engaged. So much fun!

Hard Rock Hotel and Culture Collide’s After-Party

Bleachers Performing at Lollapalooza After-Party

Oh and by the way, both of these after-parties were free to the public as long as you RSVP’d. And both had free drinks flowing all night from 10pm-2am. How’s that for an after-party??

Since I truly do love being a tourist in my own city, it is pretty cool to find new, creative ways to experience mainstream events. I was so fortunate to see a handful of Lollapalooza artists perform and for that I am very grateful. Now when people ask if I went to Lollapalooza, I can say, “kind of”!

Please Note: I was invited as media to both of these events and all opinions are my own.