Digging the Heat? Support our mission to keep Austin ~actually~ weird with the best of Austin-centric news and reflections. Get 20% off forever IS SXSW NOW JUST A HIPPER VERSION OF DAVOS? “When Elton John gets invited to a week-long confab in the Alps, you know the WEF isn’t plotting with the Illuminati…they’re just partying. By attending this party, they convey to the world that they 'must be rich and important', so they go, enjoy Elton John, and bask in that reputation.” Davos Reddit discussion, February 2024. A screen shot from the SXSW online programming guide. First of all, thank you so much for all the feedback over last week’s look at the weirdest SXSW I’ve ever attended. The discussion — which includes one SX exec calling my thoughts “bullshit” — triggered a deeper reflection. So let’s talk, starting with AI. “It’s magic. It’s probably going to solve cancer. It’s probably going to give us a lot of climate solutions. This is a powerful thing. But I’m really terrified. Imagine what this technology will do within this current incentive structure. This is the same system that brought us climate change, income inequality, and the general lack of gratitude and understanding of our worth and the worth of those around us.” Daniel Kwan, SXSW 2024, as quoted in TechCrunch . Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, SXSW 2024. Their Oscar Award-winning film Everything Everywhere All At Once premiered at SXSW 2022. Programmers gave voice to plenty of skeptics. Even the AI chatbot we consulted* approves, noting 54 panels — all named and popped out in a matter of seconds — demonstrate “the event’s broad coverage of topics within the Artificial Intelligence domain.” There were provocative thinkers like author Kara Swisher, who just released a book sharply disputing tech’s aura of glossy altruism. “Why did they have to say they were changing the world when in fact they just wanted to make money.  And if we understand that and not put them in these positions like they’re magicians, that’s great.  I just wish they would stop telling me they’re so fantastic.” Swisher continues: “They kinda cosplay this idea that they’re changing the world. You don’t have an investment banker saying ‘you know what we really want to do is bring everyone together.’ They’re like ‘I want to make that money and take it home to my giant house in Connecticut’, which is fine. You kinda understand those people.” Kara Swisher, Real Time With Bill Maher , March 22, 2024. However, we didn’t hear that during SXSW but rather a week later on HBO. To be more precise, critical commentary was buried beneath the wave of outrage over an ill-advised AI highlight reel. Therein lies the challenge — SXSW can program a broad array of opinions, but it can’t control what sticks. In this fragmented universe, one misstep blows up everything else. Especially since most don’t go to the panels, and instead catch the hot takes on social media. As Swisher observes “with social media we talk about our grievances with each other and we don’t tell stories”. Over the past 15 years or so, tech’s eclipsed music as the driving force, and the shift mirrors Austin’s evolution as well. But here’s the deal — this crowd’s not nearly as much fun as Mojo Nixon and the band of crazy outsiders who defined SXSW for the first quarter century. That tribe created moments . Unexpected pop-ups that fed the FOMO. “Murray entered accompanied by members of the Wu Tang Clan. He headed behind the bar and proceeded to serve drinks. No matter what anyone ordered, the actor served them tequila.” Julian Adler, Medium Bill Murray tending bar is cool. Harry and Meghan eating dinner at a London-based private club on South Congress not so much.  (SXSW 2010) Bill Murray at The Shangri-La. (SXSW 2024) Soho House Austin. I’ve long believed Austin and SXSW feed and support each other, a virtuous circle that’s transformed our city. But where are we now? Driving downtown a few nights ago, a baby blue sports car — Corvette, Maserati, Ferrari, one of those — zipped by, the personalized plate reading “PRGRMR”.  I looked over at a stoplight and there it was, new Austin. Some dude rocking his best Jeremy Strong.  A recent New Yorker piece talks about this breed with quantum computing expert Michael Nielsen. He recalls a conversation with a senior-level AI startup executive, who put the risk of triggering mass destruction at 50%. “If you truly believe AI has a coin-toss probability of killing you and everyone you love, Nielsen asked, then how can you continue to build it? The person’s response was ‘In the meantime, I get to have a nice house and car.’ Not everyone says this part out loud, but many people — and not only in Silicon Valley— have an inchoate sense that the luxuries they enjoy in the present may come at great cost to future generations.” Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, March 11, 2024 That’s why this shift feels so profound — the creative expression being celebrated and chased in our city also carries fearsome potential. For everyone, everywhere. And the people driving this bus don’t always shoot straight. Which brings us back to the sizzle, social media, and the necessity for SXSW to dial in the discussion. It tapes the panels, it chooses the highlights, and what it puts out should read more like a debate and less like a TED talk. The AI kerfuffle and the protests over the US Army’s high profile this year only fuel suspicion about the new owners and their motivations. Right or wrong, it’s clear we’re headed somewhere less defined, and the alternative community from which the festival sprang, the world of the actual weird, feels more distant by the day. Alan Berg, Publisher SXSW Co-Founder Nick Barbaro and partner Susan Moffat navigate the fest. *special thanks to Robert Riggs GREATNESS UNDER GLASS “This book was read aloud to me by the only great teacher I had in the school system.  At the age of 11 he gave me permission to be both a poet and a painter.  He told me if you can paint with a brush you can paint with words.” Inscribed by Joni Mitchell on the inside cover of Kim , by Rudyard Kipling. Joni Mitchell’s copy of Kim , on display at the LBJ Library In the spring of 1969 The Johnny Cash Show premiered on TV. The first musical guests were Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell and Doug Kershaw. How do we know this? Well it’s part of Music America: Iconic Objects from America’s Music History , and the LBJ Library was chosen for the exhibit’s national debut. Curators collected personal memorabilia that belonged to artists ranging from Tupac Shakur to Taylor Swift.   THE THREADS THE AXES THE WORDS Especially striking are the letters and lyrics, where the style and rhythm feel like extensions of the artists themselves — you see the struggle, the character, the humor, the creative process. Also striking is how these handwritten notes stop about the time laptops and cell phones arrive. “Angelic?  Friend Bob, I’d like to, but I can’t get that high” Johnny Cash writing to Bob Dylan. The exhibit’s a treat. Free parking off Red River, half-price admission on Tuesdays. Music America runs through August 11th. CONTINUE THE TRIP TO THE WAYBACK ONCE YOU’RE DONE Pair the visit with a nosh at one of the iconic campus hangs. Dirty Martin’s (1926), El Patio (1954), and Posse East (1971) will all connect you to OG Austin. SEARCHING FOR SWINGERS WITH EVIL MOPAC That’s what KUT’s Elizabeth McQueen did, and she shared the rest of the story as part of a recent ATXplained Live at The Paramount Theatre. It’s worth the watch. The next edition of ATXplained plays The Paramount on Wednesday, April 3rd. Here’s the link for tickets . Go see something, tell us about it, we’ll share more stories next week. Let’s build something together. We’d be forever grateful for your help, and an easy way to do so is by subscribing to the Happy Heat Substack. What comes in goes right back out in artist commissions and live shows. To which you’ll get to come! For the first 100 subscribers, we are offering 20% off forever. Get 20% off forever