Mayor Lightfoot and City departments launched the first youth-led Summer Kickback Series to provide teens with fun and safe activities in their communities on Friday nights in 2021. After engaging and receiving additional feedback from community leaders, youth organizations, and Chicago’s youth on how to keep youth safe and create more opportunities in communities experiencing high levels of violence, Mayor Lightfoot and the First Lady Amy Eshleman expanded programming to Saturday evenings in 2022 to ensure even more weekend activities for youth were available.   

Building upon the success of last summer’s Friday Kickback Series, the City invested nearly $1 million in youth programming and hosted eight supplemental Low-Key Kickbacks: Saturday Edition, on Saturdays from 6 to 9 p.m. The Low-Key series brought food, entertainment, and various activities to the South and West sides. Entertainment included prominent Chicago DJs, steppers and breakers, sporting events, a selfie station, art activations, and free COVID-19 vaccination sites. Below is a list of the Low-Key Kickbacks.