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Wyatt Flores, Jon Batiste and Role Model to Tape Austin City Limits

Post author By Lily Angelle
Post date August 25, 2025

Austin City Limits is thrilled to announce a trio of highly-anticipated new tapings for our Season 51: on September 19 country singer-songwriter Wyatt Flores makes his ACL debut with highlights from his breakout Welcome to the Plains; on October 3, seven-time Grammy Award-winning and Academy Award-winning singer, songwriter and composer Jon Batiste returns to the ACL stage to preview songs from his rootsy new album Big Money; and in-demand musician Role Model joins us for his ACL debut on October 7, riding high with his album Kansas Anymore amid one of the summer’s hottest tours.

Photo couresty of Natalie Rhea

Wyatt Flores’ debut album, Welcome to the Plains, takes listeners to the corner of the world that this 24-year-old Red Dirt country songwriter knows best—Oklahoma. A 14-song trek through tales of fiery love, small-town truths and lighthearted mortality, the album captures the grounded, sincere storytelling forged by Flores partly during formative years in his hometown of Stillwater. “Welcome To The Plains is all about my fight to come home,” says the Mexican American artist. The project details Flores’ journey as he balances the struggle of leaving a small town versus the highs and lows of life on the road. Produced by Beau Bedford (Orville Peck, Shane Smith & The Saints), the album opens with the scene-setting title track, co-written by Old Crow Medicine Show bandleader Ketch Secor. Flores sketches a new take on home in the foot-stomping country-folk title tune. The album has received widespread critical acclaim and earned Flores an Emerging Act of the Year nomination at the 2024 Americana Honors & Awards. At age 12, Flores’ sister passed him a copy of Turnpike Troubadours’ red-dirt masterpiece, Diamonds & Gasoline, unlocking a love for roots music that later lead to artists such as Jason Isbell, 49 Winchester and Sturgill Simpson. Flores established himself as one of country music’s most vital voices with a trio of EPs, his 2022 debut The Hutson Sessions, featuring the fan-favorite single “Please Don’t Go”; 2023’s Life Lessons and 2024’s Half Life, building a steadfast following of listeners who often heard echoes of their own lives in his honest songs. Gigs in tiny Oklahoma bars turned into packed club shows and, eventually, a contract with Island Records. An electric live performer, Flores comes to our stage from a run of tour dates supporting Post Malone in addition to his own headlining tour.

One of America’s most celebrated musicians and entertainers, Jon Batiste delivered an electrifying and ecstatic performance in his 2021 Season 47 debut. He returns a seven-time Grammy Award winner and makes his highly anticipated return to the ACL stage with highlights from his ninth studio album, Big Money. A genre-defying body of work, Big Money (Verve/Interscope), features collaborations with artists including No I.D., Randy Newman, and Andra Day, and further deepens the New Orleans native’s exploration of the American musical canon. Expansive yet deeply personal, the album weaves together elements of soul, hip-hop, jazz, blues and pop, continuing Batiste’s tradition of blending innovation with emotional resonance. “We have such a profoundly rich cultural inheritance in America that many of us don’t know of, don’t fully embrace, don’t fully understand,” the artist recently told Rolling Stone. “And artists just have to keep making statements that point back to that and counter things that are trying to dilute that or erase it.” In support of the release, Batiste will bring his Big Money Tour across the U.S. with over 30 dates. A versatile and prolific artist, Batiste has released multiple albums since he made his ACL debut with songs from 2021’s landmark WE ARE. Batiste released his eighth studio album, Beethoven Blues (Batiste Piano Series, Vol. 1), in late 2024, which delivered his biggest debut sales week, debuting at No. 1 on Billboard’s Classical Albums chart and spending nine consecutive weeks at No. 1 on Classical Crossover, while entering the Billboard 200 at No. 64. The first installment in a solo piano series, that project showcased Batiste’s personal spin on some of Beethoven’s most iconic works, reimagined through an expansive lens. These reimagined classics embody the indomitable spirit of the blues, and – true to Batiste’s “message of open-armed inclusivity” (The New York Times) – embrace a broad genre spectrum. The release followed 2023’s World Music Radio, a globetrotting album of originals that drew inspiration from Batiste’s mission to create community and expand culture with the power of music. Featuring collaborators including Jon Bellion, Lana Del Rey, Lil’ Wayne and more, the album was praised by critics for its universal message and genre-defying sound. Hailed by NPR as “a sprawling exploration of what global music can sound like,” World Music Radio received a total of five Grammy nominations, including ‘Album of the Year.’

Photo courtesy of Daniel Prakopcyk

Role Model, the performance name of Tucker Pillsbury, first made waves with his 2022 debut album Rx, a confessional and genre-blurring pop record that introduced him as a bold new voice in alternative music. With his sophomore album Kansas Anymore, Role Model showcases his evolution as a songwriter and performer with 13 folk-tinged, lyrically driven tracks. Working alongside Noah Conrad, Ian Fitchuk, Scott Harris, and Jonah Shy, he crafted standout pieces including the viral hit “Sally, When the Wine Runs Out,” which he performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. GQ praises the album’s “big-swing pop music” and Paper hails its “folk-tinged, heart-heavy” sound. Following the success of his No Place Like Tour, which sold over 90,000 tickets worldwide, the Maine native released a deluxe edition, Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye), featuring four new songs that expand the emotional and sonic scope of the original album. In addition to his musical accomplishments, Pillsbury is stepping into the world of acting with his debut role in Good Sex, the upcoming Netflix film from Lena Dunham, starring opposite Natalie Portman and Mark Ruffalo.
We’re thrilled to welcome these one-of-a-kind acts 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.

Live Stream News

Live Stream FINNEAS’ ACL Taping on 8/7 @ 8pm CT

Post author By Lily Angelle
Post date August 4, 2025

Austin City Limits is thrilled to announce the highly-anticipated taping featuring FINNEAS on August 7 will be livestreamed worldwide via the ACLTV YouTube Channel. The gifted artist first appeared on the ACL stage in Season 45 in 2019 alongside his sister Billie Eilish and we’re thrilled to welcome FINNEAS back for his solo debut amid a sold-out world tour, showcasing songs from his sophomore solo album For Cryin’ Out Loud!

ACL offers fans worldwide the unique opportunity to watch his taping live in its entirety from the famed Austin City Limits stage in Austin, Texas, on Thursday, August 7 at 8pm CT/9pm ET free via the ACLTV YouTube Channel. The livestream will begin promptly at 8pm CT and will only be available live. The broadcast episode will air this fall on PBS and stream on pbs.org/austincitylimits as a highlight of the television series’s upcoming Season 51.

Celebrated singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer FINNEAS has quietly emerged as a ubiquitous presence in popular music and culture. He achieved stratospheric success for his groundbreaking work with his sister Billie Eilish, including a history-making ten Grammy Awards for his work with her. His impact has also reverberated through film and television, whether it be writing Academy Award-winning songs for blockbuster films Barbie and No Time To Die or composing original scores for Academy Award winner Alfonso Cuarón’s Apple TV+ series Disclaimer and HBO Max’s The Fallout, Vengeance, and more.

FINNEAS introduced a heartfelt and hypnotic style for his 2019 debut solo outing, Blood Harmony, an EP highlighted by the gold-certified “Let’s Fall in Love for the Night.” 2021 saw him unveil his full-length debut, The Optimist, on Interscope Records. A restless creative, FINNEAS is always challenging himself. It’s why he opted to gather a handful of friends, head to the studio as “a band,” and make his second full-length solo album, For Cryin’ Out Loud! He set the stage for the record with the title track which Rolling Stone hailed “…the work of a popcraft savant with a light, versatile touch.”

Tags Live Streams, Season 51

Important Feature News

RIP to Tejano Music Legend Flaco Jiménez

Post author By Lily Angelle
Post date August 1, 2025

Austin City Limits is very sorry to hear of the death of Tejano music legend Flaco Jiménez. The Tejano music icon made seven appearances on the show, beginning with episode 4 of the inaugural season and culminating in his induction into the ACL Hall of Fame in 2015. He was 86.

Tejano music royalty, “El Rey de Texas” was the son of Santiago Jiménez and grandson of Patricio Jiménez – both conjunto pioneers. Starting on the bajo sexto, San Antonio native Flaco began performing at age seven with his dad and made his first recordings at fifteen as part of Los Caporales. Influenced by Santiago Sr. and zydeco master Clifton Chenier, Flaco took up the three-button accordion, the instrument that would propel him to international fame.

Alongside his equally talented brother Santiago Jr., Flaco released his first album El Rey y El Principe de la Musica Norteña in 1962. That was only the first of over fifty years’ worth of records for major, independent, and regional labels – the most recent of which is 2014’s Flaco Jiménez y Tomas Ortíz De Los Alegres De Terán. He toured all over the world, earning shelves’ worth of honors: six Grammy Awards (including a Lifetime Achievement award), the Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award, a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Billboard Latin Music Lifetime Achievement Award, and, of course, the ACL Hall of Fame.

Ever eager to spread the gospel of Tejano music, Flaco was also a lively collaborator, with famous friends and wide-open ears. He met Doug Sahm in the sixties, beginning a partnership that would last until Sahm’s 1999 death. With Sir Doug, he was a founding member of Texas treasure the Texas Tornados, with whom he recorded seven albums. Flaco often kept company with genre-agnostic guitarist, singer, and songwriter Ry Cooder, starting with 1976’ Chicken Skin Music. That LP included “He’ll Have to Go,” the Jim Reeves cover that led to Cooder’s appearance as a guest on Flaco’s first ACL taping. His squeezebox skills and irrepressible spirit also led him to appear on record and in concert with dozens of major stars: Dwight Yoakam and Buck Owens (“Streets of Bakersfield”), the Mavericks (“All You Ever Do is Bring Me Down”), Bob Dylan, Dr. John, Los Lobos, Grammy-winning supergroup Los Super Seven, Peter Rowan, and even the Rolling Stones, with whom he recorded on the double platinum Voodoo Lounge.

Flaco’s extraordinary talent, undeniable charisma, and willingness to expand the horizons of Tejano music beyond the boundaries of the Lone Star State meant he isn’t just a key note in the sound of Texas. His work is integral to the fabric of American music. We mourn his passing.

Tags Flaco Jimenez, RIP

News Tickets Distributed

Giveaway: FINNEAS

Post author By Lily Angelle
Post date July 30, 2025

UPDATE: GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED

*UPDATE: GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED* Austin City Limits will tape a performance by FINNEAS on Thursday, August 7th at 8 pm at ACL Live at The Moody Theater (310 W. 2nd Street, Willie Nelson Blvd). Austin City Limits Taping Giveaways are presented by AXS Events.

Winners will be chosen at random and a photo ID will be required to pick up tickets. Winners will be notified via email. Duplicate entries for a single taping will be automatically voided. Tickets are not transferable and will be voided if sold. Standing may be required. No photography, recording or cell phone use in the studio. No cameras, computers or recording devices allowed in the venue. While we do our best to accommodate all winners, we cannot guarantee admission. These passes are based on space available therefore you will be filling in spots available on the floor or balcony depending on the tickets that are available when you arrive.

Austin City Limits (ACL) is thrilled to announce a summer taping with FINNEAS in his headlining ACL debut on August 7. FINNEAS first appeared on the ACL stage in Season 45 in 2019 alongside his sister Billie Eilish and we’re thrilled to welcome the gifted artist back to the ACL stage for his solo debut as a highlight of ACL’s Season 51. Finneas makes his ACL debut showcasing songs from his sophomore solo album, For Cryin’ Out Loud!

We’re thrilled to welcome FINNEAS to our stage in his debut headlining appearance amid a sold-out world tour. Want to be part of our audience? We will post information on how to get free passes a week in advance of the taping. Follow us on IG and Facebook and X for notice of postings. The broadcast episode will air and stream this fall on PBS as part of ACL’s upcoming Season 51.

For entry to Austin City Limits tapings, you agree to abide by the Taping Health & Safety Protocols based on the current COVID-19 Community Risk Stage in effect at the time of the event. By attending the ACL tapings, you agree to the Terms & Conditions.

Ticket Giveaway Tickets Distributed

Giveaway: My Morning Jacket

Post author By Lily Angelle
Post date July 24, 2025

*UPDATE: Giveaway now closed.* Austin City Limits will tape a performance by My Morning Jacket on Friday, August 1st at 8 pm at ACL Live at The Moody Theater (310 W. 2nd Street, Willie Nelson Blvd). Austin City Limits Taping Giveaways are presented by AXS Events.

In their return to the ACL stage for the first time in nearly a decade, My Morning Jacket will perform a full set taping in celebration of their induction into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame. Special guest, legendary music journalist and acclaimed filmmaker Cameron Crowe, will induct the rock legends, as they join the other legendary acts who have been inducted over the past decade.

Widely ranked among the greatest live bands of their generation, My Morning Jacket have long maintained their status as one of the most vital forces in American rock-and-roll. With their thrillingly expansive and eclectic sound, the band has influenced an entire era of musicians, largely by staying one step ahead of mainstream pop culture and following their instincts to endless innovation. For more than 25 years, My Morning Jacket have achieved an incredibly rare feat in the world of modern rock – upholding a long-established cultural legacy while sustaining all the curiosity and creative hunger of their very earliest days. The Louisville, KY-bred five-piece – vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, guitarist Carl Broemel, drummer Patrick Hallahan, keyboardist Bo Koster – recently released is, their first album in nearly four years, and their 10th studio album; the result is perhaps the most masterfully realized work yet from a band fully committed to their belief in music as a conduit for revelation of all kinds. Largely recorded at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, is finds MMJ deviating from their typically self-produced approach by teaming up with 3x Grammy-winner Brendan O’Brien (Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen). For James – who has produced or co-produced all of the band’s studio albums since their 1999 debut The Tennessee Fire – the decision to work with O’Brien stemmed from a newfound willingness to open up their process and involve an outside creative force in shaping their restlessly inventive yet nuanced form of psych-rock. New songs such as the sprawling, album-opening epic, “Out In The Open,” the ravishing love song “Time Waited,” and the delightfully warped “Squid Ink” reveal a band whose voracious creative appetite is wholly matched by a deft command of their visionary musicality. When it came time to name the collection, MMJ chose a title that speaks to the infinitely unpredictable nature of music-making. “I like how the word ‘is’ indicates a sense of presence in the now – there’s no logic or rationale behind this record; it just is,” says James. “All these songs came into existence out of an attempt to connect with something beyond the human experiment, which for me is the whole purpose of music – that connection with something larger than us, yet something we are all equally a part of.” is represents another milestone in the band’s ever-evolving body of work, as well as an opportunity to breathe new energy into their historically stunning and hard-driving live performances. James points to the “undeniable force of loving” as the most essential factor in the band’s longevity and unending enchantment with the process of musical creation. “Hopefully, those songs will be helpful to people and give them some kind of peace as they try to deal with the insanity of the world,” says James. “Because that’s what music does for me, and doing the same for others is always my greatest dream come true.”

Tags my morning jacket, Season 51

Featured Hall of Fame

Cameron Crowe to Induct My Morning Jacket into Austin City Limits Hall of Fame

Post author By Lily Angelle
Post date July 16, 2025

Austin City Limits proudly announces that special guest Cameron Crowe will induct rock legends My Morning Jacket into the 2025 Austin City Limits Hall of Fame on Friday, August 1. The Oscar-winning filmmaker and best-selling author will be on hand to honor his friends as the American originals enter the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame, joining the esteemed acts inducted since 2014.

In their return to the ACL stage for the first time in nearly a decade, My Morning Jacket will perform a full set taping for the occasion. In a new first, the show is open to all, and the Hall of Fame will not be a ticketed event. Fans will have the opportunity to win free passes to attend by signing up for a ticket giveaway on acltv.com beginning July 24 through July 29.

Cameron Crowe: “Thank you to Austin City Limits for the invitation to help honor My Morning Jacket. MMJ has the rarest kind of mastery. Their songs explode with passion and feeling on stage and in the studio. They’ve long been one of my favorite bands. I can’t wait for a chance to see them play again on the ACL stage.”

Jim James: “We are so excited to experience this ACL honor with the great Cameron Crowe! We have long loved his beautiful visions in the art of filmmaking, as well as his wisdom and humor in the world of music journalism. His art and friendship has enriched our lives so much over the years and we are so stoked to share the stage with him!”

One of America’s most iconic music journalists, Cameron Crowe helped define the job by becoming Rolling Stone’s youngest-ever contributor as a fifteen-year-old high school graduate. He went on to profile the likes of Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Elton John, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Led Zeppelin, Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, and The Who at the heady height of the album-oriented rock era.

Crowe became an acclaimed filmmaker writing and/or directing some of the most beloved films of the past forty years, from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Say Anything… and Singles, to Jerry Maguire, Vanilla Sky and Almost Famous.

Crowe’s long-awaited memoir, The Uncool, will be published by Avid Reader Press, a division of Simon & Schuster, on October 28, 2025. Hamburgers for the Apocalypse: The Music Journalism of Cameron Crowe, a companion collection of the author’s essential interviews and newly conducted follow-up conversations, will be published in 2026.

The Induction and taping will take place at ACL’s studio home, ACL Live at The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. The hourlong broadcast episode will air as a season highlight of Austin City Limits‘ upcoming Season 51, premiering this October on PBS. The series recently celebrated its milestone 50th Anniversary in 2024 with a landmark campaign honoring its legacy and future. The live music beacon is a public media institution that continues to champion artistry, authenticity and music discovery.

ACL is thrilled to welcome My Morning Jacket into the ACL Hall of Fame and to showcase their latest sonic adventure, is. The Louisville, KY-bred five-piece recently released is, their first album in nearly four years, and their 10th studio album. My Morning Jacket has made a trio of fan-favorite appearances on Austin City Limits over their 25+ year career, with revelatory performances that have earned the band a place in the ACL canon. They made their series debut in Season 31 (2006) and returned within the course of a decade during Season 34 (2008) and Season 42 (2016). Bandleader Jim James also appeared during that period with Monsters of Folk (S36/2010), and as a guest of Bright Eyes (S30/2005) and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band (S37/2011). Additionally, James also taped a solo appearance in 2013 for Season 39.

Since its inception in 2014, the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame has honored legendary artists who have played a pivotal role in the trailblazing music series’ remarkable half-century legacy as a music institution. The inaugural awards honored Willie Nelson and Stevie Ray Vaughan. The Hall of Fame has inducted over twenty-five artists at ten previous ceremonies including Lloyd Maines, Asleep at the Wheel, Loretta Lynn, Guy Clark, Flaco Jiménez, Townes Van Zandt, Kris Kristofferson, Bonnie Raitt, B.B. King, Roy Orbison, Rosanne Cash, The Neville Brothers, Ray Charles, Marcia Ball, Los Lobos, Lyle Lovett, Buddy Guy, Shawn Colvin, Lucinda Williams, Wilco, Alejandro Escovedo, Sheryl Crow, Joe Ely, John Prine and Trisha Yearwood. The 10th Anniversary Hall of Fame welcomed Garth Brooks to its ranks.

Widely ranked among the greatest live bands of their generation, My Morning Jacket have long maintained their status as one of the most vital forces in American rock-and-roll. Known for their thrillingly expansive and eclectic sound, the five-piece – vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, guitarist Carl Broemel, drummer Patrick Hallahan, keyboardist Bo Koster – has influenced an entire era of musicians, largely by staying one step ahead of mainstream pop culture and following their instincts toward endless innovation. For more than 25 years, My Morning Jacket has achieved an incredibly rare feat in the world of modern rock – upholding a long-established cultural legacy while sustaining all the curiosity and creative hunger of their earliest days.

Fans can enter a public giveaway to win free passes to be a part of the audience for this historic Hall of Fame taping. Visit us at acltv.com and follow @acltv on IG, Facebook and X for updates.

Austin City Limits and the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame are produced by Austin PBS. Austin PBS is a non-profit organization providing public television and educational resources to Central Texas as well as producing quality national programming.

Austin City Limits:

A monument to music, Austin City Limits is the longest-running music series in television history, providing viewers a front-row seat to the best in live performance for more than 50 years. On October 17, 1974, Willie Nelson taped the pilot episode and the trailblazing series premiered on PBS in 1975. The public media mainstay has showcased iconic performances from legends and innovators in every genre of popular song. The series is the flagship of the popular Austin City Limits Music Festival and has earned countless accolades for its quality presentation of live music performances, including a Peabody Award, a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame designation and it remains the only TV series awarded the National Medal of Arts. Austin City Limits writes the next chapter in its remarkable 50+ year broadcast run with the upcoming Season 51.