Austin City Limits (ACL) brought in a huge crowd at Austin’s Zilker Park from October 6-8 (plus an additional weekend from October 13-15).
ACL put together an enormous lineup with talent like Kendrick Lamar, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Foo Fighters, Shania Twain, Hozier, Labrinth, Niall Horan and Odesza to name a few. ACL also brings in local newcomers such as Grace Sorensen, Calder Allen and Ben Kweller.
The festival is packed with glittery outfits, cowboy boots, dancing and high energy. One thing that makes ACL so unique is that it is an all-ages music festival. There’s something very pure about seeing a parent lift their kid on their shoulders in the crowd or an elderly couple sharing a sweet moment.
Another perk of ACL is in their beer garden, you can watch some of your favorite sports games in between sets such as UT vs OU at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas or NFL Sunday.
Here are some of our favorite moments from the festival:
Thirty Seconds to Mars which features Jared and Shannon Leto brought the heat – literally. There was pyro, people on shoulders, black balloons floating through the crowd and mosh pitting. The band also brought out, Austin local and actor, Matthew McConaughey.
Rina Sawayama wowed the crowd with multiple outfit changes in the Texas heat. She also had the crowd chanting to her song “This Hell”. The dance numbers were exciting and so tiring to watch as we battled the heat, but well worth every moment.
Local artist, Grace Sorensen, played her first festival at ACL. She coordinated outfits with her band, plus brought out a few special guests. Sorensen also covered “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac which had everyone singing along.
Former One Direction member and current judge on The Voice, Niall Horan, had the crowd swooning over his cover of “The Story of My Life”. He took the crowd to 2017 by playing “This Town” and “Slow Hands”. There were fans in tears over the beautiful performance.
Noah Kahan had one of the loudest crowds who were singing every word with him. He also brought out special guest, Mt. Joy, for their unreleased song. He jumped, sang and truly gave it his all to Austin this weekend.
ACL is so special and has something for everyone, whether that is music, pop-ups, food, art or the joy of being surrounded with others. The festival has a perfect view of the downtown skyline and this twice a year event is one of the best things about living in Austin.
