By Ana Barajas @anabarajasmusic
I've been living in Austin for a little over ten years now. Partly for family reasons and partly because of its reputation as a friendly city for artists, I came to live here. Today, after so much time, I consider myself just another Austinite (I just discovered that's the demonym in Spanish, as I only knew it in English as "Austinite").
Austin is a mid-sized city, a Democratic oasis amidst the absolute Republicanism of the rest of Texas. The first thing that catches your eye when you arrive is the amount of green areas, parks and walking trails and the number of bars with live music that you find in Downtown practically open 24/7. It is a city developed by hippies, entrepreneurs and free thinkers where art, technology and "good living" have been the three pillars of growth. This is where the technology company Dell and Whole Foods (the largest organic food chain in the United States) originated. and the famous South By Southwest festival, which has me writing about my adopted city today.
It's almost a given that a festival of this magnitude would emerge in a city like Austin and reach the scale it has today. It's impossible not to feel the music in the air when you arrive in Austin. Iconic artists like Janis Joplin, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Willie Nelson, Daniel Johnson, Lucinda Williams, and today's artists like Gary Clark Jr., Grupo Fantasma, and Black Pumas have come from here.
SXSW was founded in 1987, with the intention of being a destination for creatives from all over the world. From virtually the beginning, it was conceived as a festival that would be a meeting point for musicians and people from the world of film and technology. and today it also has an educational component. If one analyzes the local context, it becomes clear why SXSW has such a broad scope, because, as I mentioned earlier, in Austin Art, technology, and entrepreneurship have been part of the city's daily life.
From virtually its inception, the festival has been multidisciplinary and large-scale. For its inaugural edition, they received 700 applications, from which 177 artists performed on 15 stages. 35 years later, in 2023 the number of registered artists was 6840, of which 1,577 performed on 78 stages. This gives us an idea of the magnitude of this event for a mid-sized city like Austin. Today, it can be said that the Festival It is an important source of income for the city and a benchmark for independent music, film and international technology.
We've seen some big names pass through the SXSW stages of the caliber of Jay Z, Kanye West and the one and only (RIP) Johnny Cash, Amy Winehouse or Prince even unknown figures who have become popular after performing at the festival, as is the case with John Mayer, MIA or Janelle Monáe. For Latin American artists, Attending SXSW is definitely a calling card for their internationalization. Monsieur Periné and Bomba Estéreo, Some of the most beloved artists from our region at the festival have visited on several occasions and played on various stages.
The festival's success has lay in its character, a festival that doesn't have an exact physical location, as it basically takes place throughout the city center, In various bars and venues, offering everything from beer and cocktails to all kinds of food, parties, and "houses" representing guest countries, each vying to outshine the others. Basically, nobody wants to miss a thing, and that's the secret to the festival's success: everyone wants to be at SXSW.
For Austin, SXSW has meant growth, with all its good and bad implications.
The good: During the festival All hotels are at full capacity; restaurants and local businesses make their year during the festival weeks. In 2019, SXSW generated an estimated $355 million in the local economy. It is estimated that more than 25% of jobs generated annually in Austin are attributed to the festival. If we add to this all the technology companies and incubators that have managed to establish themselves thanks to their participation in the festival, It's easy to understand why Austin is the fastest growing city in the United States.
On the other hand, for artists coming from abroad, Being part of SXSW has become an important calling card for their resumes And having access to conferences with agents from different sectors can create interesting opportunities.
Bad: The festival does not pay a single penny to international artists, and the meager payment to local and national artists has generated great discontent for some years now. To such an extent that, thanks to protests from various artists and artists' associations, the payments of $100 for a solo performance and $250 for a band were raised to $150 and $250 respectively. This still doesn't cover more than 50% of the costs involved in coming to Austin for the festival. For those coming from other countries, it's every man for himself.
Many of us wonder, How can a festival with so many sources of income not pay its artists better?. The festival runs almost entirely on volunteer work (annually more than 3,000 local and visiting volunteers work at the festival for free in exchange for a badge or entry, whose value was $1,442,095 for 2024 for Platinum). On the other hand, The festival also generates good income from registration fees ($55 per artist) Of the thousands of bands registered (more than six thousand this year). If we add to that an attendance of more than 300,000 people, do the math.
On the other hand, For locals, the cost of living has risen incredibly, the value of real estate has doubled or tripled, and on festival days everything becomes even more expensive. For example, parking on festival days easily costs $30 to $40 per hour, and traffic can be an unbearable ordeal if you have the misfortune of working downtown. If you're a local artist, it's practically impossible to get anywhere venues to play in the center during those days if you are not an official artist of the festival.
My friend Rafael, who has been a volunteer for the past 10 years, traveling from Colombia, has witnessed firsthand the changes within the festival: “As a spectator, the content has changed and evolved to meet technological needs. The budget for Latin American content, which was much more prominent at the beginning, has been cut; there used to be more diversity at the festival. After Covid, SXSW boosted local and national themes with 100%. As a volunteer, the festival has created a sense of belonging. Local people who can't afford the $2,000 fee have other options to participate, becoming part of the community. In Colombia, festivals need to expand their volunteer programs to foster a greater sense of belonging.”
Despite its shortcomings and problems, SXSW has positively transformed the city and remains a necessary space for artists. More than the showcases, the possibility of making connections at conferences, panels, networking events and even, and especially, at the parties themselves, where it is sometimes easier to meet people than in the conference format.
In conclusion There are many things that Colombian festivals and those from our continent can learn from the SXSW experience. The truth is that the magnitude, scope, and success of this festival This is partly due to a local community interested in uniting around an initiative, taking advantage of the city's best qualities, and generating a sense of belonging among the festival organizers., local governments and the community to achieve positive transformations, beyond all the shortcomings we see today with an enlarged and corporatized festival.
