Lil Wayne and Jelly Roll photos provided by Adrianna Casiano for iHeartRadio, Doechii photo provided by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for iHeartRadio

Either by careful planning or timely coincidence, the tenth anniversary of 103.5 KISS FM’s Jingle Ball wound up bringing both veterans who’ve been lighting up the airwaves since the very beginning, to the red hot of the right here and now.

When it came to headliner Lil Wayne, a last minute substitution for “Queen of Rap” Nicki Minaj, he managed to bridge the gap as an established player in the hip-hop game capable of logging just as many hits today.

All anyone had to do was look around at the wide range of ages populating the Allstate Arena as Weezy, his DJ and drummer breezed through the party-starting likes of “Uproar,” “Blunt Blowin’” and beyond to the glow of several thousand Wedndy’s glow sticks and Capitol One reindeer ears.

He may be the self-admitted “Son Of A Sinner,” but Jelly Roll is also undoubtedly one of the most exciting artists as of late to converge at the crossroads of country, rock and hip-hop, captivating KISS-FM listeners with the charisma of a superstar-in-the-making.

The fact that he was feeling extra loose on the exact date of his 39th birthday only added to “Need A Favor,” “Save Me,” which features Lainey Wilson on the studio version, and a medley of retro shout-outs to Easy-E, Eminem and Outkast.

After going viral on TikTok, rapper Doechii is rising as quickly on the radio and brought Jingle Ball her solo start-up, “Yucky Blucky Fruitcake,” plus personal versions of “Persuasive,” remixed with SZA, and “What It Is (Block Boy),” originally with Kodak Black.

Other notables included boy turned fully-grown man band Big Time Rush, on the verge of a comeback thanks to “Another Life” ending a decade-long hiatus from the studio, alongside rising “Area Codes” rapper Kaliii.

Official openers (G)-IDLE are already established K-pop powerhouses overseas, though the girl group introduced pop meets electronic and trap bangers off “I Never Die” and elsewhere to an instantly adoring audience.

Besides the three-hour extravaganza, highlights of the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball’s many tour dates and talents will be part of an exclusive ABC special on Thursday, December 21 from 8:00-10:00 p.m. EST/PST, followed by a chance to stream a day later on Hulu as anticipation already builds towards the next round of the annual tradition.

For additional information on 103.5. Jingle Ball, visit iHeart.com/Jingle-Ball.

Upcoming concert highlights at the Allstate Arena include Trans-Siberian Orchestra (Dec. 28); Los Tigres Del Norte (Feb. 10); Sam Hunt (Feb. 24); Marca MP (Mar. 8); Angeles Azules (Mar. 23); Ive (Mar. 26); Kane Brown (Apr. 12); Banda MS (Apr. 26); Gloria Trevi (May 18); Luis Miguel (May 29-30); AJR (Jun. 29 and Jul. 3); Pepe Aguilar (Jul. 5-6); Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire (Jul. 12); Iron Maiden (Oct. 24) and Los Temerarios (Nov. 8-9). For additional details, visit Rosemont.com/Allstate/.

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