14 May Lux is Love + Outfitter Grand Opening – Friday May 22nd 5-8pm
Friends of Big Marsh is ready to kick off a new season at Big Marsh Park! We are excited to celebrate the re-opening of the Friends of Big Marsh Outfitter (with a brand new fleet of bikes!) alongside the concession (with new treats from Venus Oasis!) and the first Lux is Love popup! We will post a discount code for bike rental reservations shortly.
Complimentary park tours and bike workshops beginning at 5pm.
Every 4th Friday 5–8pm May – Sept 26 Free Open Air South Side, Chicago
“Music is medicine. Nature is the vessel. Community is the cure.”
A free, recurring outdoor gathering at Big Marsh Park — 11559 S Stony Island — produced by Lux Listenings in partnership with Friends of Big Marsh and the Chicago Park District. Every 4th Friday from May through September 26, the South Side has a place to be. Outside. Together. Breathing.
Lo-fi is the philosophy, not just the sound. Warm, unhurried, deliberately imperfect — it signals the nervous system to slow down, release urgency, and breathe. Every selector at Lux is Love carries this quality regardless of genre: jazz, soul, house, Afrobeat, or global rhythm. Ease is always present.
Event details
Time
5:00 – 8:00 PM
Every 4th Friday
Season
May – Sept 26
Admission
Free
Location
Big Marsh Park
11559 S Stony Island
Format
Outdoor · Family · Bikes
Partners
Friends of Big Marsh · Chicago Park District
Produced by
Fathom DJ Entities/ Lux Listenings
Music, healing & the nervous system
There is scientific and spiritual truth in what happens when the right music meets open air and an open heart. The nervous system responds to sound. Cortisol drops. The body releases tension it didn’t know it was holding. Breath deepens. The mind — so often locked in survival — finds permission to rest.
Big Marsh amplifies this. Surrounded by water, trails, open sky, and the quiet power of restored land — the natural environment signals safety to the nervous system before a single note is played. The music arrives into that space like a conversation the body was already ready to have.
What to expect
- Intentionally curated sound — lo-fi, jazz, soul, house, hip-hop, and global rhythms chosen for their capacity to soothe, ease, and restore. This with occasional live musicianship by special invited guests.
- A spiritually grounded atmosphere — every selector brings presence, love, and awareness of the healing power of their craft
- A nervous system–friendly environment — unhurried, unproduced, designed to let the body relax into the moment
- One of Chicago’s most breathtaking open-air natural spaces — trails, water, and sky
- Kids · Bikes · Families · Everyone welcome
- Food and community vendors — a full Friday evening with no reason to leave
- A reliable, recurring monthly gathering all summer long
Expansive Sounds Fathom DJ Lux Music Purveyors Scrabblor Ace D Mr. Larry Lust Sunshine Rewind Scroll Swannque Phelo Terrance Funk
For sponsors — why this partnership matters
Sponsorship places your brand inside genuine community trust — not a popup, not a one-time moment, but a gathering that returns all summer because the people want it there. The wellness, healing, and mental health space is one of the fastest growing areas of community investment nationally. Lux is Love sits at the intersection of music therapy, community wellness, outdoor activation, and South Side cultural identity.