Days after the 2025 edition of Austin, TX's South by Southwest, the festival — commonly known as SXSW — has made plans to shorten the event for 2026, cutting back on music programming.
UPDATE (3/17, 1:20 p.m. ET): In an email to Exclaim!, a spokesperson for SXSW issued the following statement:
We are really excited about the plans for SXSW 2026. With the Austin Convention Center closing down for three years, we believe it's a great opportunity to put new ideas into action.
A shorter SX gives attendees more of a chance to be here for the entire run. With the Conference, Film & TV Festival, and Music Festival all taking place concurrently over seven days, everyone will have the chance to experience the whole of SXSW.
This gives music fans an opportunity to enjoy seven nights of showcases instead of the six we've had for several years. It also allows us to continue the work the Music Festival programmers have done over the last decade in paring down the numbers of showcasing artists while spreading the shows out over a greater part of the event. This creates a more curated experience for attendees and artists while retaining the discovery that the music festival is known for.
We also know that post-pandemic attendees want more personalized experiences, and we're excited to explore new ways to bring people together.
As the Austin American-Statesman reports, next year's SXSW will run from Thursday, March 12 to Wednesday, March 18, thereby cutting the event's final weekend, which has traditionally been dedicated to music performances and conferences. However, the fest is still selling a Music badge among the options for purchase for 2026, suggesting the music portion of SXSW likely won't entirely cease to exist.
SXSW was founded in 1987 as a music showcase, something of a companion to New York City's New Music Seminar. Since then, however, it has expanded into a multidisciplinary festival, amalgamating film, interactive media, tech, comedy and more into the mix.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, participation in the music festival has reportedly been declining since the 2010s, when the average count of participating acts peaked at about 2,000. (Comparatively, this year's edition apparently showcased 1,012 bands.) In 2024, there was a big reckoning amongst artists about SXSW's ties to the defence industry, with more than 80 bands dropping out in protest. The festival proceeded to drop the US Army as a sponsor for this year's edition.
Back in 2023, SXSW increased pay for performing artists but otherwise failed to meet the demands of over 120 musicians who signed an open letter calling for fair pay.