Olivia Rodrigo brought 45,000 people to Irvine, California on August 29, for Daisy Chain Fields, a one-day music festival featuring an all-women lineup. She aimed to raise money for organizations supporting women and girls.
The lineup includes Bikini Kill, Chappell Roan, Devon Again, Die Spitz, Doechii, Eli, Garbage, Mitski, Not for Radio, Olivia Rodrigo, Quiet Light, Rachel Chinouriri, Santigold, The Breeders and special guests: Karen O, Sarah McLachlan and Stevie Nicks.
For Caroline Levin, a triple senior majoring in psychology, creative writing and motion pictures, the motivation was simple: “Honestly, I originally wanted to go to see Chappell,” Levin said.
She also looked forward to seeing artists like Mitski and Stevie Nicks, whom she never expected to see in the same place. But once she was there, the festival’s larger purpose became harder to ignore.
Together, they raised $20 million for 10 charities focused on issues affecting women and girls. The organizations work across a range of causes, including reproductive rights, gender-based violence, children’s welfare and indigenous health. Among them are Planned Parenthood, The Center for Reproductive Rights, the National Women’s Law Center and Baby2Baby.
Before attending, Levin knew the proceeds would benefit organizations supporting women and girls, but she didn’t know much about the individual charities.
That changed during the festival.
Signs, infographics and representatives from the organizations were present throughout the space, integrating the causes into the festival as a whole. “The charities were one of the biggest focuses of the festival,” Levin said.
Rodrigo isn’t the first artist to aspire to use music as a tool to support a greater cause. The singer said she was inspired by the Lilith Fair, a similar music festival created by Sarah McLachlan in 1997, which drew significant misogynistic backlash for centering on women artists. To show appreciation for her predecessor, Rodrigo invited McLachlan to her set at the Daisy Chain Fields festival. Those central ideals showed up in every aspect of the festival.
Yoko Ono invited festivalgoers to write down their personal hopes and dreams during her song “The Wishing Tree.” The Guerilla Girls, an anonymous feminist artist collective, brought their art into the space. The lineup also reflected the festival’s ideals by listing acts in alphabetical order rather than by popularity, contrary to what is usually done.
“The festival felt like a concert but it had a much more positive and supportive energy than other shows I’ve been to before,” Levin said. For her, the distinction between music and activism was not necessarily clear-cut. The music remained at the center, but the cause changed the atmosphere surrounding it.
Levin said there were moments when she was “moved to tears by the power of what was being accomplished,” particularly when speakers reflected on how far women had come since Lilith Fair and how far they still had to go.
Daisy Chain couldn’t fix the problems these organizations are trying to solve in one day, but it inspired people, gave these charities a platform and united artists from different generations for one cause.
Maybe music cannot create change by itself, but it can create a space for people to listen.