Bears fans soak up the songs, suds and stars to kick-off 100th season

Matt Glick, left, and Danny Smith. | Tom Schuba/Chicago Sun-Times

The festivities in Grant Park on Thursday were designed to help launch the Bears’ 100th season – with a matchup against the arch-nemesis Green Bay Packers.

But for many fans it felt more like the Super Bowl or the playoffs with past Bears greats working the crowd, a star-studded nationally televised concert and giant screens set up throughout the park to watch the game.

But thankfully, there was no double-doink.

And fans were grateful.

“I wish they could do this every single Bears game,” said Francisco Argote, who came in from west suburban Berkeley to enjoy the interactive experiences offered at the event. “I know it’s hard to put this all together, but I enjoyed this.”

Bears fan Francisco Argote gives the thumbs up.

Ahead of the big concert, platinum-selling rappers Lil Yachty and Juice Wrld squared off in the latest version of the popular Madden videogame as a throng of fans cheered them on and snapped photos. Juice Wrld, a Chicago native, chided his opponent when he won.

“Y’all don’t know about this, but this is not the first time Yachty lost to me playing video games,” he joked.

Juice Wrld, third from left, and Lil Yachty, right.

A short time later, singer Meghan Trainor kicked off her set with her No. 1 song “All About That Bass” before playing through a list of hits. She was followed by Meek Mill, the Philadelphia emcee who has become a vocal advocate for criminal justice reform after successfully fighting a recent prison sentence for violating his probation.

Both artists are advocates for Inspire Change, an NFL initiative spearheaded by rapper-turned-mogul Jay-Z that’s aimed at bringing about change in neighborhoods across the country. This week, the organization announced $400,000 in donations to a pair of organizations in Chicago, according to TMZ.

While some fans came to enjoy the music, others just stopped by before heading to the game.

Matt Glick, a Packers fan from northwest suburban Woodstock, and Danny Smith, a Bears fan from far west suburban Elgin, donned matching overalls with their preferred teams’ colors -- but there was no love lost.

“I think they’re both really evenly matched teams,” said Glick, noting that he’s nevertheless worried about Packers players getting injured in the opener.

“I would love a win, but at least make it close so we can talk some more trash the rest of the season,” Smith said before the pair headed to Soldier Field.

The scene wasn’t quite as cordial near the stadium, where chants of “Green Bay sucks” could be heard emanating outside the stadium.

The tailgate lots cleared out early as fans rushed to get inside. But around 7 p.m. it took less than three minutes to get inside Gate 0, at one of the most notoriously crowded gates. During most games it can take several times as long to get in.

In the parking lot, revelers tipped back their last beers and munched on brats as kickoff loomed.

Sean Dunlea, left, and friends.

Sean Dunlea, of far west suburban Wayne, said the current Bears team may be the best he’s seen since he started tailgating roughly 18 years ago.

“We’ve got a really good defense and the offense is probably the best we’ve seen on paper,” Dunlea said. “Now it’s time to actually produce, so I’m looking forward to it tonight.”

Asked whether they think the team could make it to the Super Bowl, Dunlea and his friends said they didn’t want to jinx it.

“It starts tonight,” Dunlea said.