Austin Music Festivals– Austin is known as the Music Capital of the World, but exactly how are those standards set in relation to how much music affects our community. Even though our largest music festivals do not focus on the local music scene, it is still a large impact on the community and a major part of our culture. Perhaps it is the fact that there are so many musicians and music lovers residing in our city that drives traffic to several large festivals every year. This data I have collected is from 2012, and the numbers are daunting. With this in mind, know that the music festivals continue to grow, even past these already substantial means.
Austin City Limits– one of the largest music festivals in Austin is ACL, a three day festival held at Zilker Parker with several stages and showcasing about 120 bands. This festival brings some of the largest acts into Austin and in 2012 included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Black Keys, and Jack White. Overall economic impact totaled $120 million with 75,000 people in attendance each day of the festival. In the years following 2012, the city approved extending the festivals into two weekends, and this year, both weekends have sold out completely, generating perhaps double the revenue. Although there are certain setback to ACL, like Zilker Park being destroyed in the process, it is clear where the economic boosts come from in Austin to make into the thriving and expanding hub for music, and it all begins with a shared passion amongst its residents.
South by Southwest– SXSW is a festivals that houses more than just music- it includes film and “interactive” which includes exciting advancements in the digital world. This festival lasts over a week and generates a whopping $190 million total. This festival, however, is not centered in one location but scattered all throughout the downtown area in multiple venues. Attendance for this festival is a little harder to track, but applicable music armbands totaled over 10,000. Although, this number cannot begin to describe the actual total of people in all the venues because many venues do not require armbands and are either free, RSVP, or pay to get in. This allows SXSW to be the most versatile of all the music festivals, generating massive attendance and tourism from all over the country and the world. Total musical artists at SXSW 2012 was 2,286! Now that was difficult to chart! As a resident of Austin, I can tell you that the main setback of SXSW is good luck driving anywhere or parking. Better jump on the tram or a shuttle. But hey, this is Austin, and we’re all about that traffic. Stats for SXSW can be found here.
Fun Fun Fun Fest– by far the smallest festival I tracked but this festival should never be overlooked. It’s lineup bring some of the trendiest acts for a contemporary audience.This focuses on particular genres- hip hop, electronica, indie rock, and punk/metal. Festival Acts in 2012 included Run DMC, A$AP Rocky, and Girl Talk. This festival also offers more than music and includes comedy acts. FFF Fest is also a three day festival and is held at Auditorium Shores, generating 15,000 in ticket sales per day in 2012. That year, its economic impact was $27 million and contained about 130 music acts. I can’t think of many setbacks for this one, its just a whole lotta FUN.