Live Review: Daisy Chain Fields Festival Featuring Olivia Rodrigo, Chappell Roan, Doechii & More

For its inaugural edition, Daisy Chain Fields arrived with a sense of purpose that extended far beyond the music. Built around a lineup entirely dedicated to women and girls, the festival brought generations of artists together for a day centered on community, visibility and giving back. Ticket sales generated $10 million for the festival’s 10 nonprofit partners, with Melinda French Gates matching those funds to bring the total raised to an astounding $20 million.

The scale of that mission was reflected in a truly legendary bill. Pioneering artists like Stevie Nicks, Alanis Morissette, Bikini Kill, Garbage, The Breeders and Sarah McLachlan shared the festival with some of today’s biggest performers, including Olivia Rodrigo, Chappell Roan and Doechii. Elsewhere across the lineup, Rachel Chinouriri, Devon Again, Die Spitz, Quiet Light and Not For Radio represented a newer generation continuing to push those boundaries forward. Rather than simply gathering an impressive collection of names, Daisy Chain Fields created a cross-generational celebration of women in music, connecting artists who helped shape decades of popular and alternative music with those currently defining its future.

Rachel Chinouriri

One of the first performances of the day to draw a sizable crowd came from English singer-songwriter Rachel Chinouriri. Taking the stage at 12:30 p.m., Chinouriri was faced with some of the most unforgiving heat of the festival. Even she could not ignore it, joking with the audience, “It’s so f—ing hot, the UK ain’t like this.” Still, the heat did little to slow her down.

Chinouriri pulled heavily from her debut album, What a Devastating Turn of Events, including “All I Ever Asked” and “Never Need Me.” She also dedicated “Can We Talk About Isaac?” to her boyfriend, Isaac, turning the sweet and energetic song into a moment that had couples throughout the crowd holding each other a little closer. Looking toward what comes next, Chinouriri also previewed a track from her upcoming sophomore album, I Think I Spoke Too Soon, due Oct. 16. She described the record as being largely about navigating her 20s and “realizing I can become whoever I want to be.”

Bringing the heat from beginning to end, Chinouriri maintained an infectious level of energy throughout the set, barely giving herself a moment to slow down. Her constant movement, powerful vocals and easy connection with the audience made the performance feel effortless, providing Daisy Chain Fields with one of its first major jolts of energy.

Die Spitz

The temperature continued to climb when Die Spitz took the stage, but the Austin punk band was met by an audience already prepared to rage. From the opening moments, the group demonstrated the chaotic live energy that has made them such an exciting act to watch, tearing through material from 2025’s Something to Consume alongside selections from Teeth.

“I Hate When GIRLS Die” became an early standout, providing one of the first genuinely explosive moments of the afternoon, while “Throw Yourself to the Sword” pushed the set even further into its punk ferocity. Their appearance only amplified that energy. One member emerged in white clown makeup while lead singer Ava Schrobilgen performed in a layered polka dot skirt and pink top, creating a visual identity that was every bit as unruly as the music.

It was loud, theatrical and unapologetically messy in all the right ways. At a festival built around women occupying spaces in music that have historically attempted to exclude them, Die Spitz did not merely occupy their stage. They completely tore through it.

Santigold

Santigold brought a different kind of celebration to Daisy Chain Fields. Her set reached back through a career that has spent nearly two decades blurring the boundaries between indie, electronic, punk and pop, with a generous portion dedicated to her acclaimed 2008 self-titled debut. “L.E.S. Artistes,” “Shove It” and “Lights Out” appeared alongside Master of My Make-Believe favorites like “Disparate Youth” and “Go!,” and the songs seemed to bring as much joy to Santigold as they did to the crowd.

Early in the performance, she took a moment to recognize exactly what Rodrigo had managed to create.

“I can’t believe she pulled this off, this is amazing,” Santigold said. “This is the most important thing; if it weren’t for women, none of us would be here.”

That communal spirit eventually spilled directly onto the stage. Santigold invited numerous audience members up for a dance contest, allowing the crowd to determine the winner through their reactions. It transformed the performance from something the audience simply watched into something they could become part of, capturing the celebratory spirit that Daisy Chain Fields was attempting to foster throughout the day.

Bikini Kill

Few bookings represented the history behind Daisy Chain Fields quite like Bikini Kill. The riot girl pioneers have spent decades challenging sexism and misogyny within punk and the larger music industry, making their presence on an all-women festival lineup feel particularly significant.

Kathleen Hanna frequently used the space between songs to reflect on that history. She recalled playing shows in the 1990s where only a handful of girls might be present and where the band routinely faced harassment and hostility simply for taking the stage. Decades later, the circumstances surrounding Daisy Chain Fields offered a striking contrast.

After speaking about the difficulty of shutting out the state of the world, Hanna described the festival itself as a gift. Later, she seemed almost taken aback by how closely the audience listened, calling it one of the most engaged crowds she had ever encountered before sharing the story behind “Feels Blind.”

That attention remained through a set that included “Suck My Left One,” “Carnival,” “Reject All American” and, naturally, “Rebel Girl.” Near the end of the performance, Hanna offered another piece of advice to the younger people watching her: keep teaching those who came before them and refuse to give up.

For a festival concerned with connecting generations of women, Bikini Kill provided living evidence of how much has changed while refusing to pretend that the work is finished.

Mitski

Following the relentless energy of Bikini Kill, Mitski offered one of the day’s most dramatic tonal shifts. Her performance was quieter, stranger and considerably more internal, replacing punk aggression with carefully choreographed movement and theatrical expression.

Opening with “Where’s My Phone?,” Mitski transformed the stage through the smallest gestures. Her face, hands and body became extensions of the songs as she moved through “Nobody,” “Washing Machine Heart” and “I Bet on Losing Dogs.” Where Bikini Kill had demanded the audience look outward, Mitski’s performance seemed to pull everyone inward.

She also remained attentive to the extreme heat affecting the crowd. Between songs, Mitski reminded fans to locate the nearest security personnel if they needed assistance, momentarily taking on the role of caretaker in addition to the performer.

The contrast worked. Daisy Chain Fields did not need every artist to deliver the same interpretation of empowerment or womanhood, and Mitski’s melancholy and theatricality expanded the emotional vocabulary of the festival. Before leaving, she also offered one of the day’s increasingly common requests: Daisy Chain Fields should happen again next year.

The Breeders

Across the festival grounds, The Breeders followed with another reminder of the sheer amount of alternative music history assembled on the bill. Their presence carried its own weight. Decades after emerging as one of the defining bands of the alternative rock boom, the group could step onto a festival lineup alongside artists several generations removed from them and still command attention.

And then there was “Cannonball.”

Its unmistakable opening immediately rippled through the audience, becoming one of those festival moments where recognition seemed to travel through the crowd in real time. The Breeders did not need to chase the intensity of the artists surrounding them. Their set instead served as another bridge between Daisy Chain Fields’ past and present, demonstrating how songs created decades ago continue finding audiences long after their original moment has passed.

Doechii

Then came Doechii.

In a festival overflowing with major performances, hers still managed to feel singular. Drawing one of the day’s enormous crowds, Doechii delivered a set that was physical, theatrical and nearly impossible to walk away from. With her entire body painted pink, she appeared onstage looking less like someone arriving for another festival slot and more like someone stepping directly into her own world.

From there, the performance rarely let up. She moved through “Crazy,” “Anxiety,” “Persuasive,” “Boiled Peanuts,” “Catfish” and “Nissan Altima,” while also working in her verse from Tyler, the Creator’s “Balloon.” Her collaborations and reinterpretations expanded the set even further, including “Girl, Get Up” with SZA, Jennie’s “ExtraL” and Beyoncé’s “AMERICA HAS A PROBLEM.”

What made the performance so difficult to leave was not simply the number of recognizable songs packed into it. Doechii controlled the field. Every movement seemed deliberate, every transition pushed the performance forward and every shift in delivery demonstrated just how many different modes she can convincingly inhabit. She could rap with astonishing precision before immediately twisting the performance into something playful, theatrical or confrontational.

By the time “DENIAL IS A RIVER” arrived, Doechii had delivered one of Daisy Chain Fields’ defining sets. Surrounded by a bill containing some of the most influential women in music history, she performed with the confidence of an artist already building a legacy of her own.

Garbage

Garbage brought the festival back toward alternative rock, though not without a small hiccup. After technical difficulties forced the band to restart a song, Shirley Manson did what she had done repeatedly throughout her career: turned an imperfect moment into something worth saying.

“You can f— up and fall flat on your face in front of thousands of people and life goes on, it’s all good,” she told the audience, directing the message partly toward her nieces and nephews watching from the crowd.

Later, Manson returned to the idea of speaking directly to the younger generation. She encouraged them to be exactly who they wanted to be and to embrace the parts of themselves that might seem strange to everyone else. “Enjoy your weird self,” she urged before supplying her credentials with a laugh: “I just turned 60, I know what I’m talking about.”

Songs including “Stupid Girl” and “There’s No Future in Optimism” reinforced how naturally Garbage still fits into a festival environment. But Manson’s commentary also connected their appearance to the larger thread running through Daisy Chain Fields. Again and again, the festival’s veteran performers seemed interested not simply in performing for younger women, but in speaking to them.

Chappell Roan

Under almost any other circumstances, Chappell Roan could have headlined the festival herself.

Instead, one of the biggest pop stars in the world appeared just two performances before the night’s headlining set, a fact that demonstrated the almost absurd depth of Daisy Chain Fields’ lineup. By the time Roan arrived dressed in a striking purple ensemble, the crowd was ready for a full-scale pop spectacle.

“Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl” and “Femininomenon” immediately established the communal nature of the set, with lyrics being shouted back from seemingly every direction. But “HOT TO GO!” turned the field into something else entirely. Thousands of arms moved through the song’s familiar choreography as Roan led the audience through the dance, transforming a massive festival crowd into a synchronized extension of the stage.

The momentum continued with “Red Wine Supernova” and “Casual,” before “The Subway” showed the emotional weight underneath all of the camp and spectacle. “Good Luck, Babe!” prompted another enormous singalong, while “My Kink Is Karma” kept the theatricality running at full force.

Then came “Pink Pony Club.”

By that point, there was little distinction between Roan and the audience. People sang every word, danced with strangers and threw themselves completely into the song. It was one of those festival performances where the size of an artist’s cultural moment becomes visible. Streams, charts and viral clips can communicate popularity, but tens of thousands of people screaming the same lyrics back at a stage communicate it differently.

The remarkable thing was that Roan still wasn’t the headliner.

Chappell Roan Setlist

1. Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl
2. Femininomenon
3. HOT TO GO!
4. Red Wine Supernova
5. Casual
6. The Subway
7. Good Luck, Babe!
8. My Kink Is Karma
9. Pink Pony Club

Not For Radio

Not For Radio offered another dramatic shift in atmosphere. Where Chappell Roan’s performance had been enormous, colorful and communal, Maria Zardoya’s project retreated into something more intimate and cinematic.

The stage itself immediately established that atmosphere. A massive moss-covered circular structure sat behind the performers almost like a cradle, while lights scattered throughout the setup illuminated alongside the music. Before the performance began, the screens remained mostly black except for the outline of a swan and the words “Not For Radio,” introducing one of the recurring visual symbols surrounding the project.

Opening with “Puddles,” the set leaned heavily into the theatrical heartbreak at the center of the music. “Ache” felt especially suited to the environment, with the production and surrounding scenery making the performance feel strangely secluded despite the enormous festival unfolding around it.

Zardoya also used Daisy Chain Fields to introduce two new songs, “Comet” and “Hot Day.” The latter could hardly have received a more appropriate debut given the brutal temperatures festivalgoers had endured since the afternoon.

After hours of constant movement between artists, Not For Radio provided a rare opportunity to sink completely into a performance. It was beautiful, melancholy and immersive, creating a final change in atmosphere before the woman responsible for bringing the entire festival together took the stage.

Olivia Rodrigo

For all the legendary artists assembled at Daisy Chain Fields, the night ultimately belonged to Olivia Rodrigo.

She was not simply its headliner. She was the reason everyone was there.

When Rodrigo finally emerged, the significance of the performance extended beyond closing out a festival. Daisy Chain Fields was an idea she had helped turn into an actual space, one capable of bringing Bikini Kill, Mitski, Doechii, Garbage, Chappell Roan and countless others together on the same grounds while generating millions of dollars for organizations supporting women and girls.

During the set, Rodrigo reflected on the conception of the festival and revealed the scale of what it had accomplished. Ticket sales had generated $10 million for its nonprofit partners. Melinda French Gates then matched those funds, bringing the final total to $20 million.

It was an extraordinary number, but Rodrigo did not allow the weight of the occasion to turn the performance into a victory lap. Instead, she threw herself into a headlining set that felt loose, loud and celebratory.

“Bad Idea Right?” and “Good 4 U” brought the massive pop-rock hooks expected from a Rodrigo performance, while “Drivers License” and “Deja Vu” gave the audience the cathartic singalongs that helped propel her from teenage songwriter to one of the defining pop artists of her generation. “All-American Bitch” was especially appropriate within the context of Daisy Chain Fields, its collision of expectations, anger and femininity taking on additional meaning surrounded by a festival built around women defining themselves on their own terms.

But this was never going to be a conventional Olivia Rodrigo set.

Daisy Chain Fields had spent the entire day connecting generations, and Rodrigo used her headlining performance to make those connections literal.

Sarah McLachlan joined Rodrigo onstage for “Angel,” bringing two generations of singer-songwriters together for one of the night’s most tender moments. They followed it with “Building a Mystery,” allowing Rodrigo to step directly into McLachlan’s catalog rather than simply inviting a veteran artist into her own.

Later came Alanis Morissette.

Together, Rodrigo and Morissette performed “Ironic,” creating another almost surreal meeting between artists whose songwriting became synonymous with different generations of young women navigating anger, heartbreak, expectation and adulthood. The crowd reaction reflected exactly how much history was standing onstage at once.

And somehow, Daisy Chain Fields still had one more moment left.

Stevie Nicks joined Rodrigo for “Landslide.”

After a day spent watching generations of women share stages, stories and audiences, there could hardly have been a more fitting ending. Nicks’ presence connected Rodrigo to a lineage stretching back decades, while the song itself slowed the enormous festival down for one final moment of reflection.

Rodrigo spent the day surrounded by many of the artists who helped make a festival like Daisy Chain Fields possible. But by inviting them into her own headlining performance, she avoided presenting that history as something distant or untouchable. McLachlan, Morissette and Nicks were not simply names honored from afar. They were there, sharing the stage with the artist responsible for bringing everyone together.

That was ultimately what made Daisy Chain Fields feel bigger than even its remarkable lineup.

Across its inaugural edition, the festival created a living timeline of women in music. Bikini Kill could speak about playing shows in the 1990s where girls were scarce in the audience before performing to a festival built entirely around women. Shirley Manson could use her own mistakes to encourage younger fans to embrace theirs. Santigold could turn her stage over to the crowd. Mitski could ask everyone to look after one another. Doechii and Chappell Roan could demonstrate where the future is already heading. And Rodrigo could stand at the center of it all before welcoming Sarah McLachlan, Alanis Morissette and Stevie Nicks onto her stage.

For a first-year festival, Daisy Chain Fields accomplished something remarkably difficult. It established an identity that went beyond the artists printed on its poster. With $20 million raised for organizations supporting women and girls, the festival transformed the attention surrounding its extraordinary lineup into something tangible.

The performances gave Daisy Chain Fields its energy, but that sense of continuity gave it meaning. The women who fought for their place decades ago, those commanding the biggest stages in music today and those still finding their audiences all belonged to the same bill.

Olivia Rodrigo Setlist:

1. Drop dead
2. Bad idea right
3. Good 4 u
4. My way
5. Serena joy
6. Maggots for brains
7. Stupid song
8. Angel with Sarah McLachlan
9. Building a mystery with Sarah McLachlan
10. Honeybee
11. Drivers license
12. The cure
13. Ironic with Alanis Morissette
14. Expectations
15. All American bitch
16. Deja vu
17. Landslide with Stevie Nicks

Photo credit: Colin Hancock