Austin City Limits (ACL) welcomes back GRAMMY Award-winning R&B trailblazer Miguel for a dynamic, emotionally charged hour featuring highlights from his acclaimed album CAOS alongside fan favorites spanning his celebrated career. The episode premieres Saturday, September 26 at 8 p.m. CT/9 p.m. ET on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings), with full episodes available to stream at PBS.org, YouTube and the PBS App. All Season 52 episodes, including Miguel’s hour, will be available to stream free on the Austin City Limits YouTube Channel.
Miguel, who made an unforgettable ACL debut in Season 44 in 2018, returns to the series with a visually striking performance that finds the singer atop an overturned police cruiser as lights flash around him. Throughout the set, Miguel uses the stage as a platform for both personal and social commentary, spray-painting “ICE OUT” across the car and leading the crowd in a chant of “ICE out” during the searing CAOS track “Triggered.” “How could we not be mad?” he calls out to the crowd.
The Los Angeles-raised artist, born Miguel Jontel Pimentel, draws from his Black and Latino roots throughout his music and across CAOS, his fifth studio album and first new album in eight years. Rolling Stone raves, “This is an album about searching for meaning as you try your best to process a world on fire.”
The hour unfolds as an intensely personal exploration of a world in turmoil, with Miguel moving between vulnerability, love, and the realities of fear and violence. He brings a restless creativity and emotional immediacy to the ACL stage, moving effortlessly between the atmospheric sounds of CAOS and the career-defining hits that have made him a singular voice in R&B. Set highlights include “El Pleito,” (“the fight”) a bilingual meditation on struggle that draws deeply from Miguel’s Mexican heritage. The Spanish-language song reflects on the immigrant experience and the state of the world, ultimately returning to its message of collective resilience, as Miguel soulfully sings the refrain, “We’re all that we’ve got.” “RIP,” a self-described “crash-out anthem,” finds the artist returning to the seductive R&B sound that helped establish him as one of the genre’s most adventurous voices, blending a propulsive electronic edge with vulnerable lyrics.
Miguel is in his feelings as he closes the magnetic set with a pair of fan favorites, leading the audience in a call-and-response on the GRAMMY Award-winning smash “Adorn” before bringing the set home with the multi-platinum “Sure Thing,” which has recently reemerged as a viral hit for a new generation. The crowd sings along on the hypnotic hook, “You could bet that, never gotta sweat that,” carried by Miguel’s smooth falsetto.
“Miguel’s show, and every song in it, speaks to the times in which we live,” said longtime ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “The scope of his music takes in the world around him, but exposes the deep personal pain from within, as only Miguel can do.”
Miguel Episode Setlist:
- “Perderme”
- “CAOS”
- “Do You”
- “Coffee”
- “New Martyrs”
- “Triggered”
- “El Pleito”
- “The Thrill”
- “Anointed”
- “RIP”
- “Adorn”
- “Sure Thing”
Season 52 Broadcast Line-up (second half of season to be announced):
- September 4 —Carlos Vives y La Provincia
- September 12—Austin City Limits 12th Annual Hall of Fame Honors Brandi Carlile
- September 19—Billy Strings
- September 26—Miguel
- October 3—Sienna Spiro
- October 9—Olivia Rodrigo
- October 17—Ari Lennox
- October 24—The Red Clay Strays
- October 31—Ty Myers
- November 14—Sebastián Yatra
- November 21—Austin City Limits Presents: Americana 25th Annual Honors
For press images and episode information, visit the Austin City Limits press room at ACLTV.com/press-room.
Austin City Limits is produced by Austin PBS. Since its debut in 1974, the landmark music series has showcased the world’s finest artists from its home in Austin, Texas, and remains the longest-running music television program in history. Austin City Limits has been awarded the National Medal of Arts, a Peabody Award, and a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark designation.
Watch full episodes of Austin City Limits on PBS, stream online, and via the PBS App. As of Season 52, all episodes will be available to stream for free on the ACLTV YouTube Channel. Follow @acltv on Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter and TikTok for updates on livestreams, future tapings and episode schedules. Fans can also explore the ACLTV YouTube Channel for exclusive songs, behind-the-scenes content, and full-length artist interviews. Learn more about Austin City Limits, its programming and its history at ACLTV.com.