Tag: austin

Podcasts Take Center Stage at SXSW as Top Creators Discuss Video’s Impact

March 18, 2025

From morning commutes to late-night listening sessions, Spotify is the essential daily companion for millions of listeners globally. Podcasts, in particular, have become a cultural conversation driver among listeners, with video continuing to grow in popularity. 

There are few better places to celebrate the power of the format and its evolution than at SXSW, where culture, content, and business collide. That’s why we brought Spotify House to Austin and invited guests to relax and enjoy a day of conversations featuring some of today’s most influential voices. 

The first session of the day served up hot takes, modern wisdom, and plenty of laughs from Ira Madison III, cohost of the Crooked Media award-winning podcast Keep It, Chris Williamson, host of the popular show Modern Wisdom, and Sara Foster, actress and cohost of The World’s First Podcast, in a conversation about how podcasts have helped evolve commentary in the digital age. 

The next session turned its focus to video, with panelists Morgan Absher, host of the comedy podcast Two Hot Takes, and Rachel Lindsay, attorney, media personality, and cohost of the NAACP-nominated show Higher Learning as well as Morally Corrupt on Spotify’s The Ringer.

Both creators broke down how the format has changed their approach to podcasting. For Rachel, video has offered a level of intimacy for the audience in a way that audio alone could not. 

“Video has been a game changer for us. At first, it was a bit intimidating, but soon you forget the camera is there and just get comfortable,” she told the crowd. “My facial expressions almost become another character on the show, like an extra cohost. It unlocks a whole new level of podcasting, making our audience feel like family.”

Morgan, who recently added video episodes to Spotify, agreed with this sentiment, adding that video has the ability to capture the unspoken moments, adding an additional layer of dynamism to the conversation. 

“Sometimes there are no words and you need that reaction. Bringing video on Spotify is a ‘have your cake and eat it too’ experience,” she said. 

Discover why fans can’t get enough of Morgan Absher on Two Hot Takes, now featuring video episodes: 

At SXSW Sydney, RADAR, EQUAL, and K-Music Take Over Spotify House

October 26, 2023

Blusher performs during the RADAR Artist Showcase & Party at Spotify House during SXSW Sydney on October 19, 2023 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by James Gourley/Getty Images for Spotify)

For the first time in its history, Austin’s iconic South By Southwest (SXSW) festival expanded beyond its Texas watering hole and traveled all the way to Australia for SXSW Sydney. Fashioned as the Asia-Pacific extension of the original event, SXSW Sydney took place over eight days and included a series of creative sessions, showcases, screenings, exhibitions, and more. And you can bet Spotify was along for the ride.

We took over Sydney’s Lansdowne Hotel and transformed it into Spotify House across four days. During the day, it was the place to be for panels, networking sessions, and fireside chats. At night, Spotify House became a live-music venue with performances by a stellar line-up of artists from across the Asia-Pacific region. Spotify House was an opportunity to highlight some of our artist-first programs, like RADAR and EQUAL, as well as feature popular genres like K-hip-hop.

On our RADAR

We introduced our latest group of up-and-coming artists during a special RADAR showcase: Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers, Vv Pete, and Blusher. 

“We are so grateful to be Spotify Australia’s new RADAR artist! We cannot believe the amazing support that we have received so far,” exclaimed the band members of Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers. “We have absolutely loved seeing new people all over the world listening to us little Teeny Jeanies and we really can’t thank Spotify enough!”

RADAR is our global emerging artist program that supports rising artists, and that includes RADAR Australia and New Zealand, both of which we launched in 2020. Since then, we’ve played a significant role in helping regional artists like PANIA, merci, mercy, CHAII, Genesis Owusu, Youngn Lipz, Baker Boy, grentperez, Larissa Lambert, and Royel Otis cross over into international markets.

The response from a sold-out crowd deeply moved the artists. “We started making music in our bedrooms, and support from Spotify has made it possible to play our music to audiences all over the world,” shared Blusher. “Seeing new listeners connect with our project, being able to share not just our songs but our creative vision through visuals and playlists of the music that inspires us, makes us so excited to bring people into the Blusher world that we’re creating.”

It wasn’t just high-energy performances that amplified RADAR. Hannah Beeching, Spotify’s Lead for Global Music Program RADAR, spoke to industry veterans Andrew Klippel, Artist & Label Manager for Ourness Label, and Mardi Caught, founder of The Annex, a music marketing company, as part of the “RADAR Across Borders” session. “RADAR artists have been added to over 5,000 Spotify playlists since the program launched in 2020, and more than half of these artists have gone on to be added to more playlists in over 10 markets around the world,” Hannah remarked during the talk.