Chicago Announces Celebration of House Music’s 40th Anniversary

40 years ago, a style of new music was emerging from Chicago. The sound was made for dance floors and played at clubs around the city including the Warehouse, a space after which the nascent genre — house music — was named.

Four decades later, house music is a global phenomenon heard in underground clubs, at massive music festivals and — via Beyoncè’s 2023 Renaissance tour — on stadium speakers.

This summer, the genre’s hometown of Chicago is celebrating house music’s anniversary and global impact with an official event series, House Music 40. The new run of parties and parades begins on May 29 with a free daytime party at Chicago’s Daley Plaza that will feature sets from hometown heroes Derrick Carter and DJ Heather. The event will be hosted by Mother Diva, a Chicago scene mainstay and the self proclaimed “Madam Ambassador of House.”

Starting at 12 p.m., this lunch break party is co-sponsored by ARC Music Festival, which launched in 2021 as a platform to celebrate Chicago house and all varieties of the genre that came in its wake.

“I was raised on house music here in Chicago. It’s one of those rare global movements where we can still show our love and appreciation to a lot of the original pioneers and innovators,” ARC co-founder John Curley said in a statement. “House Music 40 understands that after everything those DJs have given us, it’s important for us as fans to give back. It’s impossible to fully thank someone for the gift of house music, but in every action we take with ARC we aim to keep letting them know that ARC is a living monument dedicated to them and house music everywhere.”

House Music 40 is a non-profit that aims to raise awareness of the contributions of Chicago house artists to the global dance scene and raise money for members of the Chicago house scene that are experiencing health issues.

Additional anniversary events this summer include the Chicago House Music Conference on May 31, the Chicago House Music Festival on June 2, the Inaugural House Music Parade and Festival on August 31 and other citywide celebrations.

ARC Music Festival returns to Chicago this Aug. 30-Sept. 1 at the city’s Union Park. The lineup includes Carter and DJ Heather, Marshall Jefferson, Dennis Ferrer, Armand Van Helden, Disclosure, Chicago-born star Honey Dijon, genre icons Carl Cox playing b2b with Green Velvet, German techno pioneer Sven Väth, a redux set from Kaskade, current phenom Dom Dolla, grime veteran Skepta and many more.