SXSW Is Finally Changing. Is It Too Little, Too Late?

Is the music portion of Austin’s South by Southwest festival in its death throes? Last week it certainly felt that way. This was a snack-size SXSW. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, SXSW routinely hosted nearly 2,000 bands on nearly 100 stages. This year those numbers bottomed out at 1,012 and 46. Crowds were sparse, hotel occupancy was down, only a handful of corporate sponsors showed up, and buzz bands were few and far between. One publicist told me he was overwhelmed not by SXSW, but by his general workload. Typically, he said, the music industry freezes for SXSW—it’s a given that everyone is in Austin. Not this year.And next year, it seems, will likely be even more anemic. The Austin Convention Center (the festival’s primary hub…

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