They Lit Up the Night in Chicago

Nothing good happens at midnight on a weeknight, and I guess that’s especially true in Brandon Johnson’s Chicago.

Those popping sounds last night weren’t early fireworks. They were weapons lighting off at a River North nightclub, and by the time they had stopped, eighteen people had been hit, four of them fatally.

NEW VIDEO obtained by WGN Investigates shows the chaotic aftermath of mass shooting.

Police swarm the scene. Officers and witnesses tend to the injured on the ground. https://t.co/ITljL2oL1Y @WGNNews pic.twitter.com/o13gIVf1cx

— Ben Bradley (@BenBradleyTV) July 3, 2025

Rap concert and party for some female rapper’s album release, right? That might be why not many people have heard about it today.

Four people were killed and 14 were wounded in a mass drive-by shooting late Wednesday night outside a nightclub in River North, Chicago police confirmed, with witnesses describing and cell phone video capturing the chaotic scene.

Gunfire erupted around 11 p.m. near the 300 block of West Chicago Avenue, outside Artis Restaurant and Lounge, as well as a Dunkin’ Donuts, which had a front window shot out. A number of clubs and businesses are located in that area, and witnesses say they heard rapid fire and a car racing out of the area.

Whoever it was waited until the venue was closing and the crowds were starting to empty out onto the street. As they did, Chicago police said a dark colored SUV with three people in it cruised past and the occupants opened fire on the partygoers.

…A worker at the nightclub told WGN it was holding an album release party for a Chicago rapper named Mello Buckzz, whose real name is Melanie Doyle, on Wednesday night. The club was closing when the shooting happened, so a large group of people were heading outside.

“It was a chaotic scene up here last night,” he said Thursday morning. “I noticed the police officers were running to the ambulance, and (an officer) had (a) young lady on his shoulder, trying to get her some help.

“She was bleeding.”

Artis Restaurant and Lounge, which just opened in April, released a statement Thursday morning, which reads:

“Last night, an act of violence occurred within the vicinity of our restaurant — and it shook us deeply.

“Artis was created as a safe space. A space where Black, Brown, Queer, and allied communities could gather, be celebrated, and feel at home in River North. We’ve always led with that mission. And what happened last night disrupted it in the most painful way.

Of course, the perps ‘fled the scene.’ They’d done what they came to do.

And frankly, I’m shocked they managed to get such a good description out of the people there. It’s usually so frustrating for police because they’re standing in pools of blood with sometimes a hundred plus pairs of eyeballs…and nobody saw anything.

As if this deadly attack wasn’t bad enough, the address itself has a history of violence attached to it, having been the site of another mass shooting in 2022.

…The restaurant where the shooting occurred is the same address of a nightclub the city shut down over two years ago after a fatal mass shooting happened outside.

[Chicago Police Supt. Larry] Snelling said the city has already issued a summary closure of the new restaurant, which opened in April.

“Right now it’s been closed — until we get to the bottom of this,” Snelling said.

It might be politically incorrect to point this out, but a little bit of caution attending these events wouldn’t be untoward particularly when the star of the evening has made a point of letting the world know of her own gang affiliation and had known gang members warbling on her release. 

This Mello Buckzz is from something known as ‘Terror Town’? Really?

…It’s believed rapper Mello Buckzz is from Terror Town, a section of South Shore known for households dedicated to gangbanging.

I mean…granted I’m not a rap fan, but isn’t that like waving a red flag at whatever bulls feel like they have some macho stripes to ear?

For his part, Bear of Little Brains Johnson wants everyone to know it’s not a gang, and it’s not a club. It was a restaurant.

And he’s just so darned mad that the gunman disrespected the ‘safe space.’

…At the news conference, Snelling said the incident was “isolated,” and that the space was rented out specifically for the event. He said he could not speak to the “culture” of the event or the motive of the gunmen.

The artist has appeared to claim an affiliation with a Chicago gang.

Mello Buckzz references “NLMB” on her Facebook page, an acronym commonly used to refer to the No Limit Muskegon Boys gang, a faction of both the Black P Stones and Gangster Disciples based on the South Shore.

Prominent drill rapper G Herbo is a longtime associate of the gang, and featured on a track of Mello Buckzz’s new album she was celebrating Wednesday night. The gang has been tied to other recent shootings, including a brazen daytime attack at South Loop barber shop, which left G Herbo’s friend and fellow NLMB member dead.

The mayor called the restaurant a “safe space,” particularly for the LGBTQ+ community, and he said it was not a club.

The rapper’s boyfriend and best friend were two of the people killed in the drive-by. Was that targeting or just lucky spraying?

Who knows with these types? 

Surveillance video shows the drive-by shooting that happened outside Mello Buckzz’s release party, which left 4 people dead and 18 injured. 😮

It’s been confirmed by Mello Buckzz that the downtown Chicago (River North) shooting killed her boyfriend, brother and two best friends. https://t.co/ppAukPsoGr pic.twitter.com/pTa1sq2DKL

— Key To The City 🔑 (@K3yToTheCity) July 3, 2025

Hizzoner swears he will not rest until they bring the carload of murdering thugs to justice.

Maybe he’ll bring some more of that ever-so-effective action against gun violence.

…This tragedy marks one of the most violent mass shootings in the city this year and has prompted renewed calls for action against gun violence in urban nightlife areas.

WHY IS EVERYBODY ALWAYS PICKING ON ME?

“18 people shot, 4 dead, in River North drive-by late last night, Chicago police confirm.”@Brandon4Chicago will blame this on disinvestment and lack of Summer jobs in the area.

Da numberz r gud. pic.twitter.com/wcJNW5KBLY

— Douglas Ritz (@douglasritz) July 3, 2025

Residents are expressing skepticism – lots of skepticism…

My ass “we will not rest”.

You’ll see @ChicagosMayor at a BBQ this weekend surrounded by a dozen police officers. pic.twitter.com/Ad3nQxO5p3

— Libs Of Chicago (@Libs_OfChicago) July 3, 2025

…as Johnson stepped on himself yet again.

Too late, @ChicagosMayor. The Internet is forever…..

18 shot in a mass shooting and this buffoon’s first social media post of the day (now deleted) mentions “interrupting violence.”

Brandon Johnson has his own special brand of stupid. pic.twitter.com/zBC0XdK4S7

— Chicago Contrarian (@ChicagoContrar1) July 3, 2025

As it stands right now, no one can find Hizzoner – he never did show for a scheduled 11 a.m. presser on the shooting – and if rumors are true, plans are already unway to ensure it’s going to suck being a Chicago cop pretty much all weekend.

The headaches just keep piling up for Chicago’s comically incompetent mayor.

As the mayor dodges questions over last night’s massacre, rumors are flying throughout Chicago a teen takeover is planned for tonight at Millenium Park.

Officers are set to be deployed at the Bean.

— Chicago Contrarian (@ChicagoContrar1) July 3, 2025

I don’t think they can call in sick all summer, either.

Be safe out there, officers, and cheer up!

The mayor says crime is down.

‘S’all good.