Austin City Limits spotlights a pair of next-generation singer-songwriters making highly-anticipated ACL debuts: multi-platinum Olivia Rodrigo and indie-rock original Phoebe Bridgers. Rodrigo, a seven-time 2022 Grammy nominee, showcases songs from her chart-topping debut SOUR, which dominated 2021 “year-end best-of” critics lists, and Bridgers performs gems from her acclaimed Punisher. The must-see episode, a fan-favorite from the current ACL season, is back by popular demand, and music lovers will have the opportunity to revisit this instant classic or catch it for the first time. The installment, which previewed in December 2021 as a midseason gift to viewers, will encore Saturday, February 5 @8pm ET/7pm CT as part of the series Season 47 on PBS and vary by market. Check local PBS listings for times. The episode will be available to music fans everywhere, streaming online the next day beginning Sunday, February 6 @10am ET at pbs.org/austincitylimits. Despite the challenges facing live music during the past year, ACL is proud to have delivered a full season of performances for viewers, all recorded at ACL’s studio home in Austin, Texas in 2021, in front of limited live audiences. The Peabody Award-winning program continues its extraordinary run as the longest-running music television show in history, providing viewers a front-row seat to the best in live performance for a remarkable 47 years. ACL airs weekly on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings) and full episodes are made available to stream online at pbs.org/austincitylimits following the initial broadcast.
18-year-old singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo dominated the charts and smashed streaming records in a breakout year, earning multiple No. 1 hits with her self-penned, record-breaking, platinum debut album SOUR, nominated for seven 2022 Grammy Awards, including the coveted “Big Four” categories: Best New Artist, Album Of The Year, Record Of The Year and Song Of The Year. The L.A. based rising star has struck a chord with insightful songs about relationships and heartbreak that resonate with her legions of fans. Rodrigo makes her first full-set performance in front of a live audience in this appearance on the ACL stage. The celebrated album SOUR is the centerpiece of her irresistible, eight-song set as the stoked crowd sings-along to every word of her lyrics. Backed by an all-female band, Rodrigo bounds onto the stage barefoot to the spiky pop-punk of “brutal,” a song that rages against the pressures of public scrutiny and social media shame. Set highlights include the piano ballad “drivers license,” the breakup anthem and debut single that skyrocketed her to fame in early 2021, now nominated for three Grammy Awards, and the bitter stomp of another No. 1 megahit, “good 4 u.”
Phoebe Bridgers’ celebrated album Punisher was one of 2020’s best-loved records, earning four 2021 Grammy nominations, including Best New Artist. The Pasadena, California-born and raised singer-songwriter doesn’t write love songs as much as songs about the impact love can have on our lives, personalities, and priorities. Bridgers has emerged as a defining musical force for a generation beset by doom and open about its mental health journeys. To say Bridgers writes about heartbreak is to undersell her blue wisdom; to say she writes about pain erases all the strange joy her music emanates. Joined by her skeleton-costumed six-piece band, Bridgers performs Punisher highlights, including the sparkling power pop gutpunch “Kyoto,” a 2021 double-Grammy nominated track. She stuns with the title track, a haunting rock heartbreaker detailing a relationship’s slow disintegration. She and her band close the set fittingly with the introspective “I Know The End,” amplified by trumpet fills and violin, ablaze in a hail of freeform noise and distortion, with Bridgers erupting in a primal scream. Bridgers makes an epic exit as she kisses her guitarist, kicks the mic stand over, and drops her guitar to the ground.
“In so many ways, Phoebe and Olivia are cut from the same musical cloth,” said ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “Phoebe’s songs are edgy, mixing pain with joy in a weird but clever way. Olivia’s songs are much the same – bold, but sensitive at the same time. They are two of the most inspiring young singers to cross the ACL stage in years.”
Olivia Rodrigo setlist:
brutal
happier
jealousy, jealousy
drivers license
traitor
favorite crime
enough for you
good 4 u
Phoebe Bridgers setlist:
DVD Menu
Garden Song
Kyoto
Punisher
Savior Complex
I Know The End
Watch live, stream anytime, and let ACL be a trusted sidekick for entertainment during these challenging days. Viewers can visit acltv.com for news regarding live streams, future Season 48 tapings and encore episode broadcast and streaming schedules or by following ACL on Facebook, Twitter and IG. Fans can also browse the ACL YouTube channel for exclusive songs, behind-the-scenes videos and full-length artist interviews.
ACL’s Season 47 premiered on October 2021 with standout performances featuring many 2022 Grammy nominees, including New Orleans musician/bandleader Jon Batiste, country superstar Miranda Lambert, bluegrass star Billy Strings, legendary Jackson Browne, R&B singer-songwriter Leon Bridges, country standout Brandy Clark, alt.rock icon St. Vincent and Americana singer-songwriter Sarah Jarosz alongside acclaimed performances from eclectic groove trio Khruangbin, celebrated singer Brittany Howard, UK singer-songwriter Jade Bird, “Gulf & Western” country sensation Charley Crockett, breakthrough singer-songwriter Joy Oladokun, superstars Duran Duran, cult songwriting favorite Terry Allen and more. ACL returned in January 2022 with a special installment, Austin City Limits 7th Annual Hall of Fame Honors, celebrating a new class of inductees: Wilco, Lucinda Williams and Alejandro Escovedo, featuring all-star music salutes and collaborations from Jason Isbell, Margo Price, Japanese Breakfast, Rosanne Cash, Sheila E., John Doe, Lenny Kaye, Bill Callahan, Terry Allen and more.