Austin’s South by Southwest festival was one of the first in-person events to be canceled last year over concern for health and safety during the Covid-19 pandemic. But now, over a year later, festival organizers have announced that the arts, music, and tech festival will be returning IRL in 2022.
“We at SXSW are hopeful that once people feel it’s safe enough to return to what will be the new normal of life, there will be a real enthusiasm for getting back to the things that brought them joy or opportunity or just the simple need to be out amongst humanity,” festival organizers said in a statement released following the conclusion of the SXSW 2021 online festival this week. “We can’t wait to bring people together once again to meet and share ideas.”
SXSW 2022 is currently scheduled to be held March 11th through 20th and will be working alongside Austin Public Health to make sure that all post-vaccine safety protocols are met.
“I’m very confident that SXSW will look normal, or near-normal next year,” Austin Public Health’s interim authority Dr. Mark Escott stated.
The 2021 festival saw events featuring political figures like Stacey Abrams and Pete Buttigieg alongside big-name musicians like Willie Nelson and Demi Lovato, who premiered her new docuseries Dancing With the Devil at SXSW’s film festival.
From Rolling Stone US
