North West performed her first solo set at Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash 2026 in Chicago on Friday (June 12).
Rocking an all-black outfit and her signature teal hair, the 12-year-old daughter of Ye (formerly Kanye West) and Kim Kardashian took the stage to perform select tracks from her debut EP, N0rth4evr, along with “TALKING,” her collaboration with Ye from the Vultures 1 album.
The set also included a surprise appearance from Lil Wayne’s son, Lil Novi.
Both of North’s parents shared moments from the festival on social media. Ye reposted footage from the event, while Kardashian gave followers a behind-the-scenes look at her daughter’s big day. The SKIMS founder shared a photo of North’s backstage pass and later posted a video of her heading toward the stage, writing, “North West just arrived at her first ever festival performance.”
North’s Summer Smash debut comes just weeks after the release of N0rth4evr, her first EP. The five-track project features the young artist rapping in both English and Japanese while blending influences from emo, rage rap, and hyperpop.
More recently on June 5, she teamed up with Novi on the song “Mula The Root of All Evil.”
Produced by VRTN, the track was recorded remotely, with North and Novi laying down their verses from separate studios. The collaboration wasn’t their first time working together, as North previously produced Novi’s song “Justswagup.”
In a recent interview with VIBE, Novi revealed that his connection with North began through TikTok.
“She had used one of my friends’ named Mag!c’s songs on TikTok, and that was how we started getting in touch with her,” Novi said.
Summer Smash 2026 runs through June 14 and features headlining performances from Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, and Baby Keem.
