BlackFacts Details

“You Can’t Stop the House”: Chosen Few Picnic Goes Virtual

World’s biggest dance party moves online with daylong Livestream on 4th of July

CHICAGO (June 24, 2020) – Even as COVID-19 has forced the cancellation of most mass gatherings this summer, the party will still go on – online – for the annual Chosen Few Picnic & Festival, organizers announced today.

The virtual festival, to be held on Saturday, July 4, 2020, will feature live DJ sets and performances from the Chosen Few DJs and guests, including comedian, actor and DJ Deon Cole, whose weekly Instagram Live DJ sessions have gone viral during shelter-in-place directives; House Music legend Byron Stingily, lead vocalist of the seminal House group Ten City; and singer-songwriter Carla Prather, noted for her work with Poi Dog Pondering and Mr. A.L.I., and the current smash hit, “Never Fall in Love with a DJ.”

The free virtual Chosen Few Festival is part of the City of Chicago’s official Fourth of July festivities, which also include at-home Salsa dance parties across Chicago – “SummerDance in Place” (chicagosummerdance.org) – presented by the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events with the Chicago Park District, and a virtual “Independence Day Salute” concert presented by the Grant Park Music Festival (gpmf.org).

“While we certainly expected to celebrate our 30th anniversary with our fellow House Music fans in Jackson Park, we’re excited that we can still keep the party going, in a different way,” says Wayne Williams, founder and president, Chosen Few DJs.

Started in 1990 as a small gathering of friends behind the Museum of Science & Industry, the Chosen Few Picnic & House Music Festival is the world’s longest-running event dedicated to House Music.