CHICAGO — Shaun White's competed on snowboarding's biggest stage, and now he'll get a chance to perform on one of Lollapalooza's.
The Olympic gold medalist, skateboarding icon and fashion designer also plays guitar for Bad Things, which is replacing Death Grips as the festival's Grove Stage closer Saturday night, Bad Things' label, Warner Bros., confirmed.
Death Grips failed to show at a pre-festival show at Bottom Lounge Friday night and was bounced from its Grove Stage spot Saturday. Angry fans reportedly tore apart a drum kit set up for the band. Bottom Lounge will refund tickets, the club said on its Facebook page.
“[Death Grips] chose not to arrive in Chicago,” Lollapalooza spokeswoman Shelby Meade told the Tribune's Greg Kot. A Lollapalooza spokeswoman referred questions to Death Grips' management. The band's publicist said he was having trouble getting in touch with the group Saturday.
Death Grips' management repeatedly told Bottom Lounge employees the band "was on their way, only to be told by the same tour manager that the stage set up and the Death Grips album being played 'was the show,'" said Erin O'Neal, marketing director for Bottom Lounge. "It appears to us that despite having a signed contract, they never intended on performing last night and instead wanted to leave a room of disappointed fans."
She said the band's tour manager had set up what appeared to be a child's learning drum kit, which was later broken by upset fans.
"It's unfortunate that this was what Death Grips wanted to do with their fans' time and money," she said.
Bad Things will play the Kidzapalooza stage at 4:30 with Lolla founder Perry Farrell, and play the Grove Stage at 8:45.
- Emily Morris contributed reporting.
