Austin City Limits is proud to announce a new round of tapings for Season 51, showcasing a trio of acclaimed artists making highly anticipated ACL debuts. On October 21, multifaceted star Reneé Rapp takes the stage amid her headlining arena tour, with songs from her latest release BITE ME. On November 2, Grammy Award-winning songwriter and R&B innovator Leon Thomas presents highlights from his chart-topping album MUTT; and on November 4, one of music’s most electrifying live acts, Marcus King Band, preview songs from the forthcoming collection Darling Blue.
Acclaimed multi-hyphenate Reneé Rapp is a force of nature with credits in music, film, television, and Broadway. Over a few short years, Rapp has solidified her position as a dynamo across multiple sectors, earning widespread critical acclaim while simultaneously cultivating a rapidly growing fan base. Rapp’s sophomore album BITE ME, has received rapturous reviews, including a 4.5 star rave from Rolling Stone, which hailed it as “one of the year’s most delightful pop blowouts.” Featuring kiss-off anthems and uproarious highlights such as “Leave Me Alone,” “Shy,” “Mad,” and “I Think I Like You Better When You’re Gone,” BITE ME has amassed over 22 million streams. The album earned Rapp her first-ever Number 1 in the UK, a Number 3 debut on the Billboard 200 and a Number 1 on the Billboard chart for Pure U.S. Album Sales. Rapp’s BITE ME North American headlining tour—her largest to date—kicks off September 23rd and includes arenas across the U.S. After landing her breakout role as Regina George in Mean Girls on Broadway, Rapp turned her attention to a solo music career in 2022 with the release of her debut EP, Everything to Everyone. Her first full-length studio album, Snow Angel, followed in 2023 and showcased powerful vocals, introspective songwriting, and an ability to connect with fans on a deeply emotional level, garnering the largest U.S. first-week sales for a female artist debut. Snow Angel marked a significant step in Rapp’s musical journey, establishing her as one of the most compelling and dynamic new artists in the pop landscape. BITE ME cements her status as a vital voice shaping the future of pop culture.
Recently dubbed “R&B’s hottest ‘rock star’” by Billboard, Leon Thomas is a Grammy-winning artist, producer, and actor from Brooklyn who seamlessly fuses R&B, soul, and rock with fearless creativity. After signing to Ty Dolla $ign’s EZMNY Records in 2022, he made his debut with Electric Dusk (2023), featuring collaborations with Victoria Monét and Benny the Butcher, then earned a 2024 Grammy for his work on SZA’s smash single “Snooze.” His 2024 breakout sophomore release MUTT, fueled by live instrumentation and dizzying riffs, was named Billboard’s No. 1 R&B Album of the Year, with its Platinum-certified title track topping multiple charts and amassing more than 315 million streams. MUTT and its standout singles “Far Fetched” and “Vibes Don’t Lie” cemented his status as a rising force in modern R&B. In 2025, Thomas expanded his sonic universe with MUTT Deluxe: HEEL, a genre-bending extension featuring guest spots from Kehlani, Big Sean, and Halle. Exploring themes of singlehood, connection, and self-exposure with tightly crafted compositions and distinct creative clarity, the project brought performances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and a viral NPR Tiny Desk set. Honored as Billboard’s Chartbreaker and MTV PUSH’s Artist of the Month, Thomas capped off a banner year with a BET Award for Best New Artist and a sold-out MUTTS DON’T HEEL World Tour.
With Darling Blue, Grammy-nominated Marcus King reunites with his longtime live band for their first recorded album together since 2018’s Carolina Confessions. Inspired heavily by the Blue Ridge Mountains in his home state of South Carolina, the new album incorporates elements of country, folk, psychedelic rock and Motown-era R&B and continues the conversation on King’s experience with addiction and depression. Recorded at the legendary Capricorn Studios in Macon, Georgia, the album features collaborations with Billy Strings, Noah Cyrus, Jesse Welles, Jamey Johnson and Kaitlin Butts, with co-writes from the band Midland and Lainey Wilson. Tracks like “Carolina Honey,” “Heartlands” and “Honky Tonk Hell” pay homage to King’s Greenville roots and deep appreciation for his home state. Set for release September 26 on American Records/Republic Records, Darling Blue captures the spirit of a live band performance. “It truly felt like home,” King shares. “My band and I were just working out songs to perform live but ended up creating a piece of recorded music for our fans. More than anything I’ve done before, this album felt like a real concerted effort to make music for myself, and for ourselves as a band—creating for the love of creating and being as honest as we possibly can. We put everything we had into making something that we love and we have faith that the audience will feel that and love it too.” Following a successful run of critically acclaimed releases with the Marcus King Band, the singer and guitar phenom made his solo debut with the Grammy-nominated El Dorado in 2020, followed by Young Blood (2022) and Mood Swings (2024). This summer saw the return of King’s beloved Marcus King Band Family Reunion festival in Charleston, SC. King continues to tour internationally throughout 2025, sharing stages with Eric Church, Chris Stapleton and Cody Johnson.
We’re thrilled to welcome these innovators to the ACL stage. Want to be part of our audience? We will post information on how to get free passes a week in advance of the tapings. Follow us on IG and Facebook and X for notice of postings. The broadcast episodes will air and stream on PBS as part of ACL’s upcoming Season 51, stream previous seasons online or on your connected TV with the PBS App.