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SXSW spotlights 2019 festival lineup with first wave of keynote speakers

SXSW announced the first round of programming for 2019.

Photo courtesy of SXSW

With Austin City Limits Music Festival just a few weeks away, it's time to start talking talking about SXSW 2019. (We kid, we kid.) On September 10, the interactive/music/film festival announced the first round of keynote speakers, a motley crew ranging from a '90s music icon to technology darlings.

The man who launched a million selfies, Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom, will join Josh Constine, editor-at-large for TechCrunch, in a conversation. Systrom leads a keynote speaker lineup that includes Chrvches frontwoman Lauren Mayberry; writer, producer, and director Marti Noxon; and Garbage singer/fashion icon Shirley Manson.

SXSW also took the opportunity to unveil the first round of featured speakers for 2019, including producer Jason Blum (Get Out, Whiplash) joining fellow moviemaker John Pierson (Chasing Amy) in a special discussion. Ari Paul, Kyle Samani, and Linda Xie are scheduled to join Robert Hackett in a panel about the future of investing in the age of cryptocurrency and blockchain.

Other featured speakers for SXSW 2019:

The 2017 Time Person of the Year Susan Fowler
Artist and musician Amanda Palmer
Bestselling author Michael Pollan
Media theorist and author Douglas Rushkoff
BenevolentAI CEO Joanna Shields
Author Amy Webb
Designer Bjarke Ingels
Upworthy co-founder Eli Pariser

“As a premier destination for innovation and creative discovery, SXSW is proud to begin our 2019 season by announcing a strong and dynamic group of leaders, storytellers, and visionaries holding important conversations about the challenges and opportunities ahead of us,” said Hugh Forrest, SXSW chief programming officer, in a release.

This is the first programming announcement for SXSW, which returns to Austin March 8-17, 2019. In a release, the longtime Austin fest teased even more announcements coming as soon as October.

Hot headlines

Austin neighbor's chart-topping boom leads the week's most-read headlines

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Editor's note: The word of the week in Austin is growth. Whether it's fast-growing cities, the city's highly anticipated inclusion in the Michelin Guide, or an updated H-E-B ready to re-anchor the neighborhood, things are always reshaping and Austinites are keeping up online. Here are our most-read stories over the past week. Looking for things to do this weekend? Our top picks are here.

1. Austin neighbor saw 4th biggest population boom in U.S. for 2023.The Austin-area suburb of Georgetown has proven it's not just a laid back destination for tourists, but one of the fastest-growing cities in the nation.

2. Michelin Guide plates up first Texas picks, with 7 stars in Austin.The first Michelin Guide in Texas has finally made its picks known. At a black-tie event in Houston on November 11, the guide announced that 47 Austin restaurants have won recognition.

3. New South Congress H-E-B is finally opening at the end of 2024. After roughly two years of construction, H-E-B announced its 145,000-square-foot building on South Congress Avenue and East Oltorf Street will open to shoppers starting December 4.

4. Bubbly Austin brunch spot Irene's closing after 8 years. Despite the ever-increasing number of Austin brunches, the scene is losing a classic. Irene's on West 6th Street announced November 12 that it will be closing at the end of its lease this month.

Irene's Austin cocktail One of Austin's most popular brunch spots is throwing in the towel when its lease ends.Irene's/Instagram

5. $15.2 million Austin sanctuary is in the middle of a nature conservancy. The Sanctuary on Barton Creek is a 24-acre estate completely surrounded by a 4,100-acre nature conservancy to provide a peaceful and private escape from city life.