What up, Chicago?! I’m on a personal mission to make sure you all send summer out with a bang, even if it’s just to spite the gloomy ahh weather we’ve had. We’ve got concerts. We’ve got music fests. We’ve got street fests. And of course, we’ve got free stuff. Read on for more.

If you’re looking for a different kind of happy hour…

Skip the DoorDash doomscroll. Check out Ivy Hall's Munchies Guide and enter to win the Neighborhood Buds Munchies Pack, featuring $300 in local rewards. 21+. IL only. No purchase necessary.*

JUST ANNOUNCED

• Need a cure for Air & Water show fever? Top Gun: Maverick in Concert brings the movie to new heights with an exclusive VIP pre-party before the screening, as Chicago Philharmonic plays the film’s score live. Enter to win a pair of tix.

• The Anti-Cruelty Society invites all animal lovers to Clear the Shelters next weekend. Adoption fees will be waived for one day only on all available dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens. Help Clear the Shelters, one adoption at a time.*

• Watercolor painting, stitching circles, and Chicago's biggest crafters await at Adults Night Out: Crafted! Bring your latest work in progress or start a new project at Lincoln Park Zoo after hours on August 21st. Enter to win free tix.*

• One of Chicago's best art weekends is back. Wander West Loop Art Fest, discover your next favorite artist, and enter for a chance to win a one-of-a-kind $250 digital artwork by Matthew Coglianese, a.k.a. “The Pigshark.” Booyah.*

• Plus other just announced shows from Orville Peck, Lil Yachty, The Black Keys, Lord Huron, Tinashe, Why?, Mobb Deep, Talib Kweli, Jim James, George Clanton, Patrick Wolf, YG, Garth Brooks, Rod Wave, and more!

WIN STUFF WEDNESDAY: AIR & WATER SHOW FOODIE EDITION

One thing about spending all day at the beach for the Air & Water Show: you’re gonna be hungry after. Lucky for you, we called our friends at Lettuce Entertain You, and they’re giving away a whole slew of $100 gift cards to some of their best restaurants. Enter to win, send the dinner plans to the group chat, and eat up.

PACK YOUR WEEKNIGHTS 🪩

LOCALS ONLY

• Consider staying up tonight, because from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m., there’ll be anywhere from 50 to 100 shooting stars in the sky during the Perseid meteor shower. On vacation? You might even get a double feature.

• If your TikTok is back-to-back cat videos, you won’t want to miss this. Music Box Theatre is hosting CatVideoFest this weekend, and all ticket proceeds go to Red Door Animal Shelter. Did we mention there’ll be adoptable kittens?

• Missed the presale for Skrillex? Don’t worry, hope is not lost. Tickets for Two Nights at Navy Pier go on sale to the public tomorrow at 10 a.m., and in case you missed it, the lineup is insane. Catch Frost Children, Knock2, and more.

WIN STUFF

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