SXSW 2021

SXSW rolls out first round of musical artists for first-ever virtual festival

Australia's Indigo Sparke will play during this year's SXSW.

SXSW unveiled the first batch of musical artists for its 35th annual SXSW Music, the festival's first-ever digital experience.

The Austin-based festival announced dozens of musical acts from around the world, who will perform March 16-20 in their respective hometowns and then be streamed via web, mobile, or the SXSW Online Connected TV app, which is available on Apple TV, Fire TV, Roku, Samsung TV Plus, and Android TV.

This year's lineup includes acts from nearly every corner of the globe, giving fans a chance to catch performances from the likes of Beans (Geelong, Australia); Dan Bettridge (Cardiff, Wales); Tessellated (Kingston, Jamaica); AIRY (Nowon Gu, South Korea); Otoboke Beaver (Kyoto, Japan); Paul Jacobs (Montreal); Francisca Valenzuela (Santiago, Chile); Vocal Vidas (Santiago, Cuba); and Wavy The Creator (Lagos, Nigeria).

Representing Austin will be Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, Blushing, Golden Dawn Arkestra, Nané, and Sir Woman. See the full lineup here.

South By also announced this year's showcase and performance hosts, which include Austin's own Hotel Vegas & Hotel Free TV, KUTX The Breaks, and EQ Austin, among others.

To get attendees in the spirit, SXSW has launched its Official 2021 Playlists on Apple Music, Spotify, and Qobuz along with artists' videos on YouTube.

Previously, the homegrown fest announced details on SXSW speakers, including our own Willie Nelson as a Keynote Speaker. Queen Latifah, Chiquis, Mark Mothersbaugh, Wyclef Jean, Nicholas Britell, Taraji P. Henson, Barry Jenkins, Matthew McConaughey, Baratunde Thurston, Samantha Bee, and Sir Richard Branson will be among those appearing as Featured Speakers.

And though we have to wait until February 10 for the full SXSW Film lineup, organizers have revealed a handful of movies coming in 2021, including documentary Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil.

Passes for SXSW are on sale now, and due to the pandemic-induced pivot to virtual, they're more affordable when compared to the traditional in-person festival. As of press time, passes are priced at $249, but note that they increase to $399 in March, so act quickly.

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Reexamining Don Draper

Jon Hamm, Henry Winkler, and more headed to Austin for TV festival

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Jon Hamm is coming to Austin to talk about Don Draper.

From May 29 to June 1, 2025, the ATX TV Festival will take over downtown Austin, and this year Jon Hamm will be joining the festival for the first time.

Hamm will be here for an event called A Mad Men Retrospective, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the show's finale. In this panel (the moderator of which is not yet announced), Hamm will reflect on his Emmy-winning performance as Mad Men's Don Draper, the uniqueness of the character in the TV canon, and the show's influence 10 years after it ended.

Jon Hamm may be best known as Draper, but he's also given celebrated performances in several movies and other shows like Fargo, Black Mirror, and — fun fact! — Gilmore Girls.

Celebrating TV is what the ATX TV Festival is all about. This annual summer event is put on by ATX TV and consists of screenings, Q&As, and panel conversations; plus all sorts of parties, live music, happy hours, and other events. It's known for reunions of classic series and cult hits, and according to the website, it's like "TV camp for grownups."

Jon Hamm isn't the only heavy-hitter in this year's lineup.

Programming also includes an acting class and Q&A with Henry Winkler himself, a live script reading of classic episodes from The Golden Girls and Designing Women (guest actors to be announced), a reunion of the creatives and cast of the HBO hit series The Leftovers, a live recording of the podcast Sidebar: A Suits Watch Podcast with Suits stars and co-hosts Sarah Rafferty and Patrick J. Adams, and much more.

Additionally, the festival's annual Pitch Competition is still accepting open pitch submissions through January 17. This gives creatives in Austin a chance to pitch their show idea in front of some of the industry's biggest showrunners and executives. Those in the top 10 will receive a year of support to make the next steps in their TV careers.

Festival badges and passes ($150-535) are on sale now.

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