The trailblazing live music series Austin City Limits proudly announces the second half of its landmark 50th Anniversary broadcast season, with new episodes that begin airing in January 2025 as part of the esteemed program’s fourteen-episode season. Austin City Limits returns with six all-new broadcast episodes for this half-century celebration, showcasing an all-star slate of returning favorites, alongside highly-anticipated series debuts and multiple 2025 Grammy nominees: Willie Nelson & Family, Chris Stapleton, Norah Jones, The Avett Brothers and Sturgill Simpson presents Johnny Blue Skies; first-timers include Carín León, Mickey Guyton and Hurray for the Riff Raff. Providing viewers a front-row seat to the best in music performance for a remarkable 50 years, ACL returns on Saturday, January 11th at 7pm CT/8pm ET. ACL airs weekly on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings) and full episodes are made available to stream online at pbs.org/austincitylimits immediately following the initial broadcast.
Season 50 returns in January with a diverse slate that spotlights multiple 2025 Grammy nominees. Celebrated singer-songwriter Norah Jones returns for the golden anniversary season in her fifth series appearance. The nine-time Grammy-winning Texas native dazzles with selections from her LP Visions, newly-nominated for a 2025 Grammy Award. Singer and songwriter Hurray for the Riff Raff shares the hour, performing highlights from their The Past Is Still Alive, which topped many critics’ year-end best lists and was nominated for 2024 Album of the Year by the Americana Music Association.
A pair of trailblazers make must-see ACL debuts in a standout hour: Chart-topping global Latin music superstar Carín León thrills with an eighteen-piece band and songs from his 2025 Grammy-nominated album Boca Chueca Vol. 1., while country maverick and Texas native Mickey Guyton performs hits and highlights from her acclaimed sophomore LP House on Fire in a radiant debut.
ACL spotlights multiple fan-favorite acts with epic hours: The reigning CMA Awards Male Vocalist of the Year (for a record-breaking eighth time), ten-time Grammy-winning superstar Chris Stapleton returns with a scorching display of country-rock classics and gems from his LP Higher, just nominated for a pair of 2025 Grammy Awards including Best Country Album. One of the biggest live acts in music, Stapleton brings a stadium-size show to ACL in a performance for the ages.
The Avett Brothers, who last appeared in milestone Season 40, thrill in a high-energy, career-spanning hour packed with highlights and new songs from their namesake first album in five years, The Avett Brothers. The North Carolina roots and alt-country trailblazers dazzle with gorgeous harmonies in their latest outing. Shapeshifter Sturgill Simpson makes his highly-anticipated return to the ACL stage for the first time in nearly a decade with songs from his latest album, Passage Du Desir; under a new name, “Johnny Blue Skies,” the Grammy-winning iconoclast and his ace four-piece band thrill with a new chapter alongside fan-favorite classics in a magnetic hour.
Willie Nelson returns to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of his 1974 taping with a special hour that closes out Season 50. For this special ACL Presents, a Texas-sized performance with Willie & Family was recorded outdoors at Austin’s Long Center, with the actual Austin skyline as the backdrop. Highlights from the performance will premiere on February 15, 2025, as a high point of ACL’s Season 50. Willie & Family share the magic in a shining hour filled with beloved classics from his catalog, marking only the fourth time in the show’s five-decade history that a performance has been taped outdoors. Nelson, an American original and ACL Hall of Fame icon, has appeared on the series more than any other performer; he carves his name in ACL history once again to celebrate the milestone of his performance from October 1974. That now legendary show, taped as the pilot for Austin City Limits, became the cornerstone for 50 years of groundbreaking, award-winning music television and served as a dispatch to the world declaring Austin’s place as a pioneering music city. The trailblazing live music program was given the green light, premiering on PBS in 1975. “The house that Willie built” is now an institution that has become the longest-running music series in television history.
Rounding out the series golden jubilee celebrations is a two-hour primetime PBS special, Austin City Limits Celebrates 50 Years, saluting the program’s historic milestone set to premiere on April 4, 2025. This all-star celebration features some of the brightest stars in the show’s 50-year history as they return to the fabled ACL stage; the special will feature one-of-a-kind music performances with a stellar line-up including Leon Bridges, Gary Clark Jr. joined by Eve Monsees, Billy Strings featuring Sierra Hull, Indigo Girls, Lyle Lovett, Shawn Colvin, Brandy Clark, Rufus Wainwright, The Mavericks, Ángela Aguilar and many more, co-hosted by Austin-based actors Jared and Genevieve Padalecki.
“Austin City Limits has stood the test of time, and our 50th season says it all,” according to executive producer Terry Lickona. “It’s a full circle moment, with Willie returning to the stage 50 years to the day since he recorded the original pilot. For me, that was the most emotional moment of the entire past 50 years!”
Season 50 Broadcast Schedule (Second Half):
- January 11 Norah Jones | Hurray for the Riff Raff
- January 18 The Avett Brothers
- January 25 Mickey Guyton | Carín León
- February 1 Chris Stapleton
- February 8 Sturgill Simpson Presents Johnny Blue Skies
- February 15 ACL Presents: Willie Nelson & Family
- April 4 Austin City Limits Celebrates 50 Years
ACL’s landmark Season 50 launched in September 2024 with a sterling season premiere featuring Kacey Musgraves, newly-nominated for a trio of 2025 Grammy Awards. The first half of the season showcased many returning favorites in revelatory hours: rock and R&B dynamo Brittany Howard, country superstar Wynonna Judd and Colombian rock icon Juanes. ACL shone a spotlight on many ACL favorites: Austin’s own rock and soul guitar great Gary Clark Jr. and psychedelic soul act Black Pumas; standout singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers, formative bluegrass trio Nickel Creek and powerhouse husband-and-wife duo The War & Treaty. ACL showcased breakout acts in must-see ACL debuts: Chart-topping Nashville sensation Jelly Roll, next-generation singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams and newly-minted triple 2025 Grammy nominee Jacob Collier.
Produced by Austin PBS, Austin City Limits is recorded live at the series studio home ACL Live in Austin, Texas. Watch new episodes live, stream online, or download the PBS App. Viewers can visit acltv.com for news regarding Season 51 tapings and episode schedules or by following ACL on Facebook, Twitter, IG and TikTok. Fans can also browse the ACL YouTube channel for exclusive songs, behind-the-scenes videos and full-length artist interviews.
