Every March, the start of South By Southwest signals the arrival of thousands of tourists, sponsors, actors, artists, musicians, and countless takes about whether this might be the end of South By Southwest as we know it. The panic reached a fever pitch last weekend when organizers announced changes to next year’s festival, prompting many to declare SXSW music was officially dead.
In reality, the festival’s music component isn’t going anywhere. Instead of getting a dedicated weekend over the festival’s usual 10-day run, it’ll run simultaneously alongside Film/TV and Interactive during a truncated seven-day festival in 2026. As H. Drew Blackburn wrote for The Barbed Wire’s Texas Voyager column, the desire to declare the festival DOA is cyclical in part because it has changed, and as it’s grown, everyone’s gotten their own idea of its heyday. “The festival’s not what it used to be,” he wrote. “But it’s a cultural force, and as far as institutions in Texas go, its gravity can’t be ignored.”
It’s easy to be cynical about SXSW, but in reality, this was the first time since 2019 that my music schedule was packed. I spent less time at brand activations, and more time out at showcases, where I stumbled onto acts who weren’t on my radar, saw crowds dancing the night away to local bands, and was even pleasantly surprised by some of the bigger names I hadn’t expected to see perform.
So long as the festival continues, artists, and especially newcomers, are going to make their way to Austin trying to find their audience and have a good time. Call me an optimist, but I walked away with more than a few reasons to look forward to another year, even if it might be a little different next time. Discounted early bird passes are on sale through March 31, but until next year, these were my favorite music moments of SXSW 2025:
Sultanes del Yonke
Halfway through the De Los Showcase, Sultanes del Yonke arrived with a bang. Hailing from El Paso and Ciudad Juarez, the borderland band, whose name translates to “Sultans of the Junkyard,” offers up a little bit of everything from punk to cumbia to rock, delivering a high-energy blitz that feels straight out of the hazy mirage of the Chihuahuan desert. For this five-piece group, the line between them and the crowd didn’t exist, so it didn’t take long before they had the whole crowd at Mala Fama jumping and moshing together.
Llamativa
I was on my way to catch another showcase when I stopped in my tracks at the sound of Alicia Cintron’s voice. The lead singer of Llamativa — an eight-piece all-female Latin act from San Antonio — Cintron and the band led the crowd through an effortless blend of cumbia, Tejano, salsa, and other traditional Latin music that had everyone on the Hotel Vegas patio dancing under the night sky. Both familiar and fresh, Llamativa’s energy up on stage was infectious.
Saint Blonde
Alternative rock quintet Saint Blonde hit a major milestone as a group, performing their first-ever SXSW showcases this year, and they didn’t disappoint. Based out of Denton, Texas, the group has been gearing up for their debut LP with the release of their latest single, “Prowl.” With their jangly guitars, bright vocals, and dynamic choruses, their set at BMG’s Label Showcase at the Parish was electric.
Jessica Simpson
After a 15-year hiatus since her last concert, Jessica Simpson made two surprise appearances in Austin during South By, first at the Recording Academy’s Austin Chapter Block Party, and then at Willie Nelson’s Luck Reunion. The singer, who recently split from her husband Eric Johnson, told the crowd that she was a “very single lady” who was channeling her emotions into new music. Her songs, “Breadcrumbs,” “Leave,” and “Blame Me,” are set to be a part of her upcoming EP, Nashville Canyon Part I which has the singer returning to her Texas roots with a rockabilly bent and a bit of a country twang, drawing a big response from the crowd packed into the Barn Stage at Luck.
Xavier Omar
It’s impossible not to feel the emotions that Xavier Omär pours into his music. The singer-songwriter from San Antonio first gained recognition after his hit song, “Blind Man,” made it onto Barack Obama’s Favorite Music playlist in 2022, and since then, he’s continued to draw new listeners with his layered production style, romantic lyrics, and silky-smooth vocals that soared in an intimate venue like the Parish.
Briscoe
Does anything signal you’re on the right track as a Texas band quite like performing on stage with Willie Nelson? Helmed by Philip Lupton and Truett Heintzelman, Briscoe is an Americana folk-rock duo that feels straight out of the 1970s by way of the Hill Country. At Nelson’s Luck Reunion, they performed their own set, peppered with the wistful melodies and steel guitars that make up their debut album, West of It All, before joining Nelson and other artists on stage later that night to sing “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.”
St. Vincent
We’re more than a decade removed from the infamous days of the SXSW Doritos stage, but Rivian, one of this year’s sponsors, seemed to provide a new way forward. The car manufacturer hosted the expected pop-ups and interactive experiences, but also played host to live music showcases that culminated in a surprise performance from St. Vincent. The Grammy-Award winning singer from Dallas stepped onto the stage in an all-black fit before slipping into some of the haunting, gritty tracks from her 2024 album, All Born Screaming.
