Austin prepares itself to enjoy the Austin City Limits again. The 2020 festival was cancelled due to the pandemic, but now it’s back stronger than ever. Zilker Park will be filled with magical sounds once again and it will do so with all possible health measures. To be able to access the festival, it is necessary to present a vaccination card and / or a negative test. In addition, it will be mandatory to wear a mask inside the park.
Many things have changed since the dazzling 2019 edition but what remains unchanged are the good vibes and an unbelievable lineup. This year, we are going to flip out with Billie Eilish, Doja Cat, Miley Cyrus, Erykah Badu, Tyler, The Creator, Chet Faker, Meghan Thee Stallion or Band of Horses. Don’t miss out on the highlights and incredible experiences that await you during these two weekends with our guide about ACL.
Enjoy the sounds from the Austin City Limits Festival on our Spotify’s playlist.
Austin City Limits – Friday, October 1 / October 8
The Irreverent Lady of Pop
Miley Cyrus – Honda Stage – 8pm
Miley visits Austin at a boiling point in her career. Her Plastic Hearts embraces Classic Rock, updating anthems that seemed forgotten on the hit charts. A maturity that will be put to the test at a festival where she share schedule with the king of country George Strait. ACL´s lineup is always packed of wonderful surprises. Miley’s show promises to be spicy, irreverent, and shininess.
The New Rap
Meghan Thee Stallion – Honda Stage – 6pm
The Houston diva plays hard at home. Texas is waiting her after reaching a new dimension within that melodic rap scene that is hitting the American charts. Her face is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable icons within the new urban scene. Explosive and provocative, her concert is one of the most promising in this Austin City Limits, which is a meeting with the new generation of American talent. Themes like Body, Butter, Cry Baby or B.I.T.C.H will make this musical amusement park vibrate.
The Austin City Limits Fancy Moment
Chet Faker – Miller Lite Stage – 7pm
This calm Australian dazzles with his electronic music designed for quiet moments. An elegant calm that is also part of the personal hallmark of the Austin City Limits and that we have already experienced in previous editions with Jungle, Father John Misty or James Blake. Chet Faker´s like the storm before the calm and a unique melody created by an artist at the peak of his career to enjoy in that unique natural environment such as Zilker Park.
Seattle Sounds
Heartless Bastards – Weekend 2 – Lady Bird Stage – 2pm
These people have been polishing the fine print of festivals throughout the world since 2003. Their Indie with their own style and a garage touch has made a lot of noise since its inception in Ohio. A safe and very necessary bet for any festival and for the music lover that looks for solid references. A concert destined to raise the the central hours of the first day of the weekend’s level.
From Austin with Love
Black Pumas – Lady Bird Stage – 6pm
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The Austin band has been on everyone’s lips since their participation in the recent Grammys gala. Although, long before this recognition, they had been around the city for a while offering concerts and a renewed classic R&B that hooks at the first listen. A colorful and fun direct that cannot be missing from the agenda of any mythomaniac.
Hype or not hype?
Machine Gun Kelly – Honda Stage – 4pm
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The Austin City Limits may be a good opportunity to gauge the hype of this Ohio-raised Texan rapper. His militant anarchism and his courtship with Megan Fox overshadow his ability to create easy-to-digest pop melodies with a badass edge. In Austin, we will be able to see if he’s a good musician or typical archetype of bad boy that so dazzles America.
Austin City Limits – Saturday, October 2/ October 9
Latin Looks
La Doña – Tito’s Stage – 3pm
ACL always offers us pleasant surprises on its lineup. La Doña is one of those artists who do not make noise but through their songs. She does it honestly talking about issues that are not common, from gentrification to immigration to new urban challenges. The Latin rhythms of this San Francisco artist are very personal and her honest and worldly vision of reality. Very helpful for not being blinded by the light of the great stars of the festival.
Refreshing Rhythms
Future Islands – Honda Stage – 4.20pm
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Future Islands’ synth pop rocks. Their unapologetic style is pure freshness amid the Texas heat. North Carolina boys have been on the sybarite’s Spotify’s playlists for a long time. It is time to transfer that electronic elegance to the rigors of the live. They promise to be one of the ACL’s most unclassifiable concerts. Paradise sound very touching.
The Rap Bomb
Doja Cat – Lady Bird Stage – 6.20pm
Hurricane Doja Cat is coming to Austin. The artist from Los Angeles has climbed to the peak of success in the past two years. Sexy, with no complexes and with so much talent for melodies, her music condenses the women empowerment, being the owner of a powerful image and a sibylline language that fascinates us. A good time to enjoy her songs Boss Bitch, Say So, Juicy or Streets before she becomes the definitive headliner of the main festivals.
A Star in Austin
Billie Eillish – Lady Bird Stage – 8.30pm
No star shines brighter right now than this teenager from LA. Since she lit up the last ACL, she has settled into the music industry with her long-awaited Happier than ever and it looks like she’s not going to get off her #1 status easily. Her dark pop produces generational hymns with an overwhelming personality capable of building bridges between generations. We are wondering if she maintains the freshness of her magnetic concert, which captivated us at ACL19. The person in charge of her music, her brother Finneas, will also be present at the Austin City Limits, specifically, at the two Fridays of the festival.
Latin and European Sweetness
Yendry – BMI Stage – 1.35pm
We spoke with this dazzling artist of Dominican roots and raised in Italy a few months ago in an interview in which she revealed her human side. Her urban rhythms tenderly reveal social realities because of immigration and personal events. One of the great surprises you are going to find on Zilker Park, where she arrives with a handful of sincere songs and collaborations with artists as Damian Marley.
Austin City Limits – Sunday, October 3/ October 10
Folkies Without Borders
Band of Horses – Lady Bird Stage – 4.30pm
Wise people say that any good festival must have a band from Seattle. And no one better to represent the sound of that city than Band of Horses. They are the mirror in which countless folk bands have looked since they surprised in 2004 reinventing the genre and anticipating a new folkie era. Their melodies and their songs are more necessary than ever and with them, they will illuminate this brilliant Austin City Limits.
Electric Shocks
Greta van Fleet – Lady Bird Stage – 6.30pm
From Michigan comes the rock dose that every festival should carry. The American band has been able to refine and evolve their sound in recent years. They arrive in good shape in Austin with tough but stylish sounds and galloping electricity that promises to make the festival roar with outrageous riffs.
New Reunions
St Vincent – T-Mobile Stage – 7.30pm
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The point of distinction of this Austin City Limits is offered by St. Vincent. The always great Annie Clark appears at the ACL after having overcome the exuberance of her namesake LP. Since then, she has released two much more mature and serene albums in which she explores her elegant sound world and many of the social realities and structural problems of this 21st century. Her new LP Daddy’s Home awaits her baptism by fire in Texas.
Unleashed Thermometers
Karol G – Honda Stage – 6.30pm
The Colombian artist reflects the Latin cultural boom that has been taking place in the United States in recent years. In her music, all possible Latin rhythms are combined, from bachata or reggaetón to the more conventional pop. Her charisma is beyond question while she seeks to find her own. Austin City Limits welcomes the new latin star, who will raise the temperature a few degrees.
The Exception That Breaks The Rule
Channel Tres – Vrbo Stage – 5.30pm
This rapper confirms the exception that breaks the rule. Hailing from Compton, his rap is elegant, electronic, and highly suggestive. He doesn’t renounce a certain street style but he’s satin. Sophisticated samples and hip hop different from the ghetto prototype. Without a doubt, a very personal artist who is worth stopping by at his concert.
Eternal Icons
Erykah Badu – Miller Lite Stage – 7.30pm
Another of the great sensations of the festival. Erykah is the perfect example of committed artist. The Dallas rapper has become a classic and at the forefront of the new revival of Soul and R&B that inspired by. The political commitment of Erykah Badu also fits perfectly in this era of social demands. It is inescapable to contemplate a myth that still has a lot to say and to protest.
Stories in the Park
Tyler, The Creator – Lady Bird Stage – 8.30pm
Tyler, The Creator is arguably the most versatile artist on the new rap scene. His melodies encompass Jazz, Neo-Soul, Rap, Hip Hop… All wrapped up in a fascinating urban halo and a classy style that is hard to find. His worth as a street storyteller is one of his strengths. That’s why he oversees closing this at the same schedule as Duran Duran.
Fun on Stage
Hinds – Vrbo Stage – 3.15pm
From Malasaña to Austin. A corner of Madrid will be part of the second weekend of the ACL. Hinds are one of the most recognizable faces in Madrid’s garage scene and are already veterans of SXSWs, where we interviewed us. This year they make the leap to the ACL putting a fun note of humor to the Texas festival, showing their international prestige.
A Taste of Austin City Limits
ACL Eats
Like every year, ACL is also eaten. Inside this musical festival there is a foodie festival that summarizes the boundaries of the delicious Street-food of Austin. The most demanded food trucks in the city will fill Zilker Park with aromas and flavors. Heavenly ice creams from Amy’s, pizzas from Austin’s Pizza and Southside Flying Pizza, Korean delicacies from Chi’lantro, Indian cuisine from Lambas Indian Kitchen, tequeños from Four Brothers, shawarmas from Shawarma Pint, tamales from Tamale Addiction, the sweets of Tiff’s Treats or Tiny Pies or the legendary tacos of Torchy’s are just some of the foodie temptations that the ACL Eats food trucks will offer us. Bon Appetit!
Bonus track
How difficult it is to summarize a festival like ACL in a single article! Other interesting artists deserve a mention of honor in this Experience Guide:
- Finneas, George Strait, Modest Mouse, LeAnn Rimes, Asleep at the Wheel, Duran Duran, Toosi, Jack Harlow…
See you in Zilker Park! Stay tuned to Showmoon’s social media so you don’t miss out on what’s going to happen at this amazing festival.
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