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Chris Lake weighs in on the ‘opener vs headliner’ energy debate
Chris Lake has weighed into a public discussion about the relationship between openers and headliners in dance music, pushing back gently on a take from Levity.
The conversation started when Levity posted that “openers should present themselves the way they want and play what they want,” and that “headliners should know what they’re booking and support the next generation’s…” vision rather than expect openers to set the room a specific way.
Chris Lake responded with a more nuanced view. “I think there’s more nuance to this conversation that needs to be taken into account. I just checked your music and it’s v high energy stuff. I wouldn’t imagine there’s 2 many artists that could energetically nerf your night. It’s not like that for all styles of music tho,” he wrote.
He then explained how he handles the issue from a headliner’s chair. “For me personally, I accepted years ago that I can’t expect acts to do that, so I always tell people to do their normal thing and I just adjust accordingly. I usually have a short pause in music before I start that helps reset the mood too.”
A third reply added that in an ideal world he would prefer the act before him to leave the room with energy he can build on, but that he had stopped expecting it.
The exchange tapped into a long-running discussion in the scene about whether openers should curate for the headliner or curate for themselves. The reality, as both Levity and Chris Lake’s exchange shows, depends a lot on the genre, the room and how high-energy the headliner’s own catalogue is.
Chris Lake‘s thread is still picking up engagement across X, with multiple producers chiming in on both sides of the question.
I think there's more nuance to this conversation that needs to be taken into account.
— Chris Lake (@chrislake) April 29, 2026
I just checked your music and it's v high energy stuff. I wouldn't imagine there's 2 many artists that could energetically nerf your night. It's not like that for all styles of music tho https://t.co/AXVFFpWggB
For me personally, I accepted years ago that I can't expect acts to do that, so I always tell people to do their normal thing and I just adjust accordingly. I usually have a short pause in music before I start that helps reset the mood too.
— Chris Lake (@chrislake) April 29, 2026
