The landmark television music series Austin City Limits announces the second half of Season 41, with seven brand-new shows to begin airing in January 2016. ACL has featured some of the most iconic performances in live music for over four decades, and continues with an ever more diverse line-up showcasing the most original and relevant music of today. The program returns on Saturday, January 2nd at 8pm CT/9pm ET, ringing in the new year with a new installment featuring the return of powerhouse rockers Alabama Shakes and the debut of soul revivalists Vintage Trouble.
A season highlight is multiple Grammy Award-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar making his first-ever appearance on the ACL stage. The hip-hop superstar dazzles in an epic hour with an explosive career-spanning set. Rock troubadour Ryan Adams, an ACL veteran who appeared in the milestone Season 40, returns with a special all-acoustic set, sharing an episode with acclaimed Austin indie-folk rocker Shakey Graves. The extended line-up features a number of artists making ACL debuts, among them soul phenom Leon Bridges and breakout rock ‘n soul sensations Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats in a scorching double-bill. African music queen Angélique Kidjo captivates in a stunning hour of world music. Influential indie-rock trio Sleater-Kinney make their ACL debut sharing an episode with Austin’s own garage rockers Heartless Bastards, who return in their first appearance since their arresting 2009 debut. Roots rock giants Tedeschi Trucks Band close out the season in a must-see full-hour season finale.
“With Grammy season heating up, we offer our own taste of some of ‘the best of the best’ in the year of music,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “Kendrick Lamar showcases his hip-hop masterpiece, To Pimp A Butterfly; Angelique Kidjo is a world music superstar; and the rest of the season offers up everything from R&B to folk and indie rock. This is one of our most diverse seasons ever.”
ACL’s Season 41 premiered in October with unforgettable performances from Sturgill Simpson, Asleep at the Wheel, Cassandra Wilson, Courtney Barnett, Gary Clark Jr., TV On The Radio, The War on Drugs, Don Henley, James Taylor and more. The award-winning series will continue to broadcast fan-favorite encore episodes through the end of 2015. In what has become an ACL holiday tradition, the program will encore Tom Waits’ legendary December 1978 performance, one of the most requested episodes in ACL’s 40+ year archive. Tune-in on December 19th to see this classic Christmas episode.
Season 41 | 2016 Broadcast Schedule
January 2 Alabama Shakes / Vintage Trouble
January 9 Kendrick Lamar
January 16 Ryan Adams / Shakey Graves
January 23 Angélique Kidjo
January 30 Sleater-Kinney / Heartless Bastards
February 6 Leon Bridges / Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats
February 13 Tedeschi Trucks Band