Olivia Rodrigo's Daisy Chain Fields festival brings women in music together amid 'crisis point'

The festival's lineup features the likes of Stevie Nick, Chappell Roan, Doechii, Mitski, the Breeders, among others

Olivia Rodrigo's inaugural Daisy Chain Fields festival is bringing together generations of women in music for a one-day celebration designed to promote community, inclusivity and women's rights.

The festival will take place on August 29, 2026, at Great Park in Irvine, California, with an unusually broad lineup featuring Chappell Roan, Doechii, Mitski, the Breeders, Bikini Kill, Garbage, Karen O, Sarah McLachlan and Stevie Nicks. Rodrigo personally invited each act, with the singer's admiration for many of the artists reflecting the influences behind her own music.

Garbage frontwoman Shirley Manson revealed that Rodrigo contacted the performers herself rather than leaving the invitations to agents.

"I told her it was very unusual for an agent not to be doing that," Manson said, praising Rodrigo for recognising the musicians who helped shape her sound.

Manson, whose band will perform at the festival, said Rodrigo's approach stood out because she openly acknowledges the artists who influenced her rather than presenting herself as someone who created music in isolation.

Daisy Chain Fields is also deliberately structured to avoid the competition that often surrounds major music festivals. There will be no overlapping sets, while every performer appears in the same typeface and font size on the festival poster, regardless of their level of fame.

Pop artist Eli, one of the festival's newer-generation performers, said the format creates a culture where women's work can be valued without being placed into a hierarchy.

Rodrigo also designed the event around a charitable mission. One hundred per cent of the festival's net proceeds will be distributed among organisations including Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights, while reproductive-rights education and nonprofit activations will be available throughout the festival site.

The festival draws inspiration from previous women-led music events, most notably Lilith Fair, the touring festival founded by Sarah McLachlan in 1997. McLachlan was reportedly the first person Rodrigo called when she began developing the idea for Daisy Chain Fields, and she will perform both her own set and alongside Rodrigo.

For Manson, the timing gives the festival particular significance. Although Garbage was invited to perform at Lilith Fair in the 1990s, the band declined at the time. Nearly three decades later, she said the situation for women has changed in troubling ways.

"I might have been naive, but it felt like there was more progress for women then," Manson said. "And here we are in 2026, as women's rights are regressing all over the world. We're at a crisis point."

Chappell Roan, who is scheduled to perform immediately before Rodrigo's headline set, similarly emphasised the importance of creating welcoming spaces at live shows. She said she felt honoured when Rodrigo invited her and described safe, inclusive concerts as increasingly important at a time when attending a show can feel like a privilege.

Roan is also preparing her own charity event, the two-night Super Graphic Spectacular, which will take place in October and direct all net proceeds towards LGBTQ+ community mutual-aid funds.

Daisy Chain Fields therefore represents more than Rodrigo's move into festival curation. With artists from different generations appearing side by side and the event connecting music with charitable causes, the festival is intended to create a space where women can support one another rather than compete for attention.

As Eli put it, Rodrigo's approach has given her hope for a more harmonious future, describing the festival as a gathering of "strange girls and happy hearts."