If you care about the future of live music — from the smallest indie stages to the biggest tech-fueled festival experiences — SXSW 2025 just handed you a masterclass. The legendary conference has released audio recordings from its most forward-thinking panels on the live music business, and they’re packed with insights that anyone from emerging artists to seasoned venue owners can use.
Whether you want to learn how Música Mexicana is reshaping arenas, how data is changing ticketing forever, or how AR is turning concerts into immersive spectacles, these panels don’t just talk about the future — they are the future.
Here are the best of the best:
Listen to SXSW 2025’s best Live Music Business panels
Small Stages, Big Impact: Saving Indie Stages for Artists
This panel explores the challenges faced by independent stages and the essential role they play in nurturing new artists and fostering vibrant communities. Hear from industry experts and artists who have first-hand knowledge of supporting these stages. Discover how a national program, Live Independent, is working to elevate cultural havens and ensure a thriving future for live music.
In a world where corporate dominance threatens the diversity of live music, these intimate spaces are crucial for emerging talent to hone their craft and connect with audiences.
Panelists: Alex Christie, Wasserman • Stephen Parker, National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) • Andre Perry • University of Iowa & NIVA • Fabrice Sergent, Bandsintown
Smart Venues: Using Data to Boost Revenue and Fan Experience
Venue operators must balance maximizing ticket sales with delivering top-notch fan experiences. Tech advancements like dynamic pricing, waitlist innovations, and fan targeting offer valuable data to boost revenue. This panel will explore how data analytics can transform ticketing strategies, revealing insights to reach more fans, streamline operations, and enhance the concert experience. Industry leaders will discuss how data revolutionizes ticket sales and maximizes profitability.
Evolution of Música Mexicana in the Live Music Space
The growth of Música Mexicana has become so widely accepted that the biggest arena venues in the US have been selling out shows this past year and even late night broadcasts like Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon began booking the genre’s biggest stars.
In this panel we will discuss how one single song ELLA BAILA SOLA by Eslabon Armando and Peso Pluma (debuted and performed live for the first time at SXSW) would lead the explosion of Música Mexicana in the live music space. It would go on to be the highest charting song in the genre’s history, reaching #1 on Billboard’s Global 200, achieving 21x platinum status, and be nominated for a 2023 Latin Grammy. Ella Baila Sola changed the way both Spanish AND non-Spanish speakers listened to and accepted Mexican Music. Constantly overlooked as a fad or “underground” sound, the genre would now be pushed into global recognition and consumption.
Music Festivals Get Unreal: Creating Live AR Experiences
Experience the future of concert visuals with groundbreaking Broadcast FX and Virtual Production techniques powered by Epic Games’ Unreal Engine featuring a stable of A-list artists. From AI-generated assets to real-time visuals and hybrid live + virtual performances, see how technology is redefining the concert experience. Get inspired and gain exclusive insights into the bold creative ideas and technical innovations blurring the boundaries between the digital and unreal.
The Future of Selling Experiences
“As the live entertainment industry evolves towards offering more than just a ticket to a concert, experience creators face both unprecedented opportunities and growing challenges. With a lack of customer data, high fees and hidden costs for both organizers and attendees, inefficiencies in handling bookings across multiple platforms, and ticket scalping, the old ways of selling experiences are broken. In this presentation, Ben Samuels, VP Music at Easol, will discuss how promoters, artists, venues, and brands are transforming how they sell experiences.”
From indie stages fighting for survival to tech-driven futures that feel straight out of sci-fi, SXSW 2025 proved that live music is evolving faster — and louder — than ever. These panels aren’t just conversations; they’re blueprints for the next decade of the industry. If you’re in music, you need to hear these. Because the next big idea? It might be yours.
