Due to the rainy weather this morning, the Forever Mine Music Festival, which was scheduled to begin at noon, kicked off at 1:00 p.m.
Today’s Y2K lineup is promising with rapper Chingy, and R&B singers Mya, Mario and Monica. The two-day fest ends tonight with a performance by Grammy-winning producer and DJ, Kaytranada.
So far, no changes have been made to the lineup. Artists are still set to take the stage in their original order.
Read: Who all was there? Forever Mine Music Festival, Day 1
Festival officials told The TRiiBE that any updates to the artist lineup will be announced on the Forever Mine Music Festival’s Instagram page.
4:35 p.m.
Chingy has taken the Forever Mine Music stage by storm, performing throwback goodies like “Jackpot,” “Pulling Me Back,” and “Holidae In.”
After performing his most recent single, he then went into “One Call Away,” gaining huge crowd participation. That’s expected; the song features Chicago’s own Jason Weaver.
Chingy closed strong with his major 2003 hit, “Right Thurr.”
6:20 p.m.
Mya just put on the best R&B performance so far at the Forever Mine Music Festival.
First of all, she looked great, and she dazzled the crowd in a bedazzled fringed two piece.
Next, she put on a great show, incorporating a dance routine – flanked with backup dancers, including one from Chicago – with every single song. Almost every movement was coordinated.
She leaned into the full ‘90s & Y2K nostalgia of the festival, performing hits including “Best of Me, Part. 2,” “Fallen,” “Girls Dem Sugar” and more.
During her set, she even did tributes and covers to other legendary artists, including a tribute to Michael Jackson, flaunting a white fedora while performing “Like Woah.”
Whether it was the routines, the vocals, or the outfit, Mya showed why she’s survived the test of time.
6:25 p.m.
Meanwhile, Kitty Ca$h is killing the second stage right now; the same stage where DJ Slugo gave the ultimate ghetto house party yesterday.
6:55 p.m.
Mario’s still giving that Verzuz vocal realness. Y’all remember Mario in that Verzuz against Omarion? Yeah, Mario dominated Verzuz, showing the world what real singing looks like. No shade to O.
Today, at the Forever Mine Music Festival, was no different. Not that the other acts couldn’t sing, but in the midst of running through his catalogue, Mario sang a cover of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” in the same key Houston sang it.
Dude is different. And we know it. He has a low tolerance for imperfections during his performances. After opening today’s set with his hit “Just a Friend 2002,” he stopped the music, and walked off the stage for a minute.
He then returned to the stage, addressing the crowd: “Sorry Chicago I can’t do y’all a disservice today, not today!” It’s unclear whether or not there was an issue with his sound. What is clear, though, is that it didn’t affect how he sounded.
Mario flawlessly ran through songs like “How Do I Breathe,” “Music for Love,” and “Break Up.”
Mario ended his set with his 2004 hit “Let Me Love You,” an anthem which still gets frequent spins on the radio today.
7:00 p.m.
During Mario’s set, we bumped into DJ Ca$h Era nearby. Asked about how she’s feeling coming off her Day 1 role as intermission DJ, she told The TRiiBE, “Honestly, I feel like Forever Mine fest made dreams come true, man.”
DJ Ca$h Era DJ’d during the intermissions for yesterday’s lineup, which included Bobby Valentino, Lloyd, Juvenile and the 400 Degreez Band, Kelly Rowland and Keyshia Cole. The crowd loved her mixes. “The price is up. Friday’s price is not Saturday’s price,” she said about her DJ rate increasing after the level of exposure she received at Forever Mine.
7:55 p.m.
Monica just shouted out George Daniels, a Chicago legend and owner of George’s Music Room. Monica called him “everybody’s uncle,” adding that he is the reason many artists got the exposure they did in the 1990s.
8:20 p.m.
Monica has been in the game for 30 years. For this, she thanked the fans at Forever Mine’s main stage for holding her down for so long.
Monica’s smooth, yet funky sound instantly took the crowd back to the mid 1990s. She opened with songs “Don’t Take it Personal,” and “Before You Walk Out My Life.”
She then took us through slower tracks like “U Should’ve Known Better,” “Love All Over Me,” and “Why I Love You So Much.”
It was interesting seeing Monica hold the attention of the crowd so well while singing so many slow tracks back to back. That’s a testament to the strength of her catalogue.
She then brought the energy back up, mixing her song”Everytime The Beat Drops,” with Lil M.U.’s 2025 Chicago anthem “Top of Cars,” — even hitting the percolator one time.
Monica ended her set with an emotional performance of “Angel of Mine,” which she prefaced with a few words about her dad, who is ill. Then she gave the crowd her smash hit, “So Gone.”
8:45 p.m.
Kaytranada just took the stage. It’s a packed audience out here at the Forever Mine Music Festival, and everybody’s moving their body!
10:30 p.m.
Kaytranada doesn’t need background dancers and singers. The Grammy-winning producer and DJ can hold the stage down on his own — with just his equipment and a little light show.
The crowd never stopped dancing, and the fresh aroma of marijuana never stopped flowing, once Kaytranada’s set began. “Chicago, how you doing?” he asked while spinning “Snap My Finger” from his 2024 album, Timeless. At one point, he cut the bass a little bit and some people in the crowd sang PinkPantheress’ chorus back to him.
Kaytra opened the show with his certified dance track “It Takes Two.” The song leans into the original 1988 rap song by New York City hip-hop duo Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock. Opening with the track felt like a homage to Rob Base, who passed away Friday at age 59.
Kaytranada played all the hits: blending tracks like “Don’t Worry Babe/I Got U Babe” into “You’re The One” from his debut LP, 99.9%. He also spun “Lite Spots,” “One Too Many,” “Lover/Friend” and even a Kaytraminé treat, “Sossaup.”
Kaytra was the perfect closer for Chicago, the city that birthed house music.
