Review: Jae Stephens deserves a larger stage — and more hearts to break — in Lollapalooza debut

First publishedAug 3, 00:00 UTC

Last updatedAug 3, 00:50 UTC · 4m ago

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Chicago Sun-Times6Review: Jae Stephens deserves a larger stage — and more hearts to break — in Lollapalooza debutAug 3, 00:00 UTCOpen ↗

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<p>Jae Stephens makes music for heartbreakers.</p><p>That much was true for the Los Angeles-based pop and R&amp;B singer during her Lollapalooza debut Saturday on the BMI stage, where she sang odes to keeping a roster of men for options — and loving and leaving without regard.</p><p>“Which one should I choose today? Switch ’em out like shoes today,” she sang on her single “SMH,” with a sly smile to the delight of the crowd, who erupted when Stephens brought out Chicago’s very own Shea Couleé to snap into fierce choreography alongside her.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center> <div class="Enhancement-item" data-crop=""> <figure class="Figure"><a class="AnchorLink" id="image-5d0000" name="image-5d0000"></a> <picture data-crop="medium"> <source type="image/webp" width="490" height="275" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/713e4a6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/490x275!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6e%2F06%2F78d4d2e3496998bcd6b4a655b38d%2Flollapicsday3-260801-10.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6f8b2c4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/980x550!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6e%2F06%2F78d4d2e3496998bcd6b4a655b38d%2Flollapicsday3-260801-10.jpg 2x" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <source width="490" height="275" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7f7e43d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6e%2F06%2F78d4d2e3496998bcd6b4a655b38d%2Flollapicsday3-260801-10.jpg" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <img class="Image" alt="LOLLAPICSDAY3_260801-10.jpg" srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7f7e43d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6e%2F06%2F78d4d2e3496998bcd6b4a655b38d%2Flollapicsday3-260801-10.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fca7642/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6e%2F06%2F78d4d2e3496998bcd6b4a655b38d%2Flollapicsday3-260801-10.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275" data-src="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7f7e43d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3367+0+316/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6e%2F06%2F78d4d2e3496998bcd6b4a655b38d%2Flollapicsday3-260801-10.jpg" data-lazy-load="true" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" > </picture> <div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Jae Stephens performs on the BMI stage on Day 3 of Lollapalooza in Grant Park on Saturday.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Giacomo Cain/For the Sun-Times</p></div></div> </figure> </div> </div><p>Songs like “Him&amp;Him&amp;Him” had a bubbly lightness reminiscent of SWV’s 1998 classic “So Into You,” though Stephens’ was a little less tender — “I never save their numbers, just here for the summer,” she sang while popping on stage. And her song “Precious” had a bounce that conjured images of Ciara.</p><p>In response to the loud cheers for her, Stephens appeared to get emotional onstage, before clicking back into stunt mode.</p><p>Stephens and two backup dancers hit their marks, dedicating choreo to each song while Stephens kept singing without a hint of sounding winded, as if she trained at the Destiny’s Child academy for pop’s next big star.</p><p>In reality, Stephens, 29, has cut her teeth in the music industry and as a performer, releasing several mixtapes and writing songs for the likes of Jennifer Lopez.</p><p>Clocking in at just 30 minutes, Stephens felt deserving of a larger stage, longer set time and more hearts to break.</p>

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  Review: Jae Stephens deserves a larger stage — and more hearts to break — in Lollapalooza debut

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