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People in the Austin area joined with many thousands of others across the country in protesting after an ICE officer fatally shot a woman this week in Minneapolis. Demonstrators gathered outside a Department of Homeland Security building in Pflugerville. We’ll bring you some of those voices.
After a U.S. military operation in Caracas last weekend, Venezuelans in Austin are hoping for bigger changes before they feel ready to go back home. We’ll hear from them, along with a Venezuelan-Texan author based here in Austin.
Plus, how did Austin come to be known as “The Live Music Capital of the World”? Come and dig into the ATXplained vault with us.
The full transcript of this episode of Austin Signal is available on the KUT & KUTX Studio website. The transcript is also available as subtitles or captions on some podcast apps.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:10] The people in the Austin area joined with many thousands of others across the country in protesting after an ICE officer fatally shot a woman this week in Minneapolis. Demonstrators gathered outside a Department of Homeland Security building in Pflugerville. We’ll bring you some of those voices. And after a U.S. Military operation in Caracas last weekend, Venezuelans in Austin are hoping for bigger changes before they are able to go back home. We’re going to hear from them and from a Venezuelan Texan author based here in Their stories and their voices coming up next.
KUT Announcer: Laurie Gallardo [00:00:41] The Austin Signal is a production of KUT News, hosted by Jerry Quijano.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:46] Plus, how did Austin come to be known as the live music capital of the world? Come and dig into the ATXplain vault with us. That’s coming up next, right here on Austin Signal. Howdy, you are tuned in. This is Austin Signal. It’s January 9th. Thank you for making us part of your Friday.
Protest Attendees [00:01:19] Out of Austin, ice, out of Austin!
Jerry Quijano [00:01:24] Anti-ICE protests popped up in Austin and Pflugerville yesterday after a woman in Minneapolis was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer earlier this week. She was identified as 37-year-old Renee Good. In Austin, protesters gathered on the corners of 45th and Lamar. Sarah Bradley was one of those protesters.
Sarah Bradley [00:01:44] And I don’t want to live in a place where I’m scared to spook my mind. I want to be as free as possible. And I also want us to take care of each other. Live in a society where we take care each other, that’s why I’m here.
Jerry Quijano [00:01:59] The protest in Pflugerville was held in front of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security building there. After Goode’s killing, President Donald Trump called her a quote, professional agitator, end quote. Protesters said they reject those claims. Protests are expected to continue later today at the Capitol and tomorrow morning at City Hall. You can find more coverage on the protest over at KUT.org. Again, this is Austin Signal. I’m your host Jerry Kijano. Here in town, there have also been protests and vigils in reaction to the Trump administration’s actions in Venezuela. And as the ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is facing trial in the United States, some Venezuelans here don’t feel as hopeful about returning home. QUT’s Greta Díaz González Vázquez talked to Venezuelas in Austin.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:02:48] Betty Nava and her family fled Venezuela in 2018. She and her husband were very outspoken against Nicolás Maduro’s government and felt their lives would be in danger if they stayed. Last Saturday, when she heard about the U.S. Military action to arrest Maduro, she was overwhelmed and decided to go back to bed. She couldn’t stand the possibility of being disillusioned by her country once more. Because I thought that Maduro would go back to the Maduro area. She thought Maduro would return to power in a matter of hours. Almost a week later, she’s still not ready to celebrate, especially since Maduro’s vice president, Delci Rodriguez, is now interim president.
Betty Nava [00:03:27] I still don’t fully celebrate because those people are there.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:03:31] Person who is much more intelligent than Maduro. Betty says she fears her more than Madro. When Betty, her husband, and their two sons first fled, they went to Peru. In 2021, they came to the U.S. On a tourist visa. That same year, they applied for asylum, and while waiting, they got Temporary Protected status, or TPS.
Betty Nava [00:03:52] Solamente solicitamos el TPS como protección.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:03:55] They wanted to feel protected, she says, but the Trump administration ended that program last year. Now, after Maduro’s detention…
Trisha McLaughlin [00:04:03] News for those who are here from Venezuela on temporary protective status is that they can now go home.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:04:11] With hope for their country. That’s Trisha McLaughlin from the Department of Homeland Security. After Maduro’s attention, officials from the Trump administration have repeatedly said that Venezuela is now a safe country for the roughly 600,000 Venezuelans who were under TPS. Venezuelan’s like Betty. But other people say with Maduro cabinet still in power, it’s not that simple. Liani, a Venezuelian lawyer who also lives in Austin, says it will take some time for things to get better. KUT is using only her first name because she still has family in Venezuela and fears for their safety. She says once the transition moves forward and things become clearer, it will take a while for those abroad to feel safe, to know they won’t be persecuted when they return. Liani worked as a judge in Venezuela. She says all institutions there have become corrupt over the last two decades. Cuando te digo que la han destruido todo es porque… We have to renew all the powers of the state. She says federal, state and local reforms need to take place before Venezuelans can go back. When you see people inside Venezuela celebrating and the free political prisoners, it’s because freedom has arrived in Venezuela. Freedom will come for Venezuela, she says, when people inside the country can celebrate and all political prisoners are freed. On Thursday, Venezuela’s government released some political prisoners as a gesture to, quote, consolidate peace. There have been protests inside Venezuela against Maduro’s detention, but people in the country who oppose the government have not been able to celebrate in public. The country is divided. Beti Nava hears about both sides. Some of her siblings in Venezuela agree with Maduro government, while others do not. To those who oppose Maduro, she asks them to delete all their tags criticizing the government. But to those who support him, she’s always asking
Betty Nava [00:06:13] because they continue to support a process and a group of people that destroyed our future and separated us.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:06:21] Why support those people who destroyed their futures and split their family apart?
Betty Nava [00:06:25] That’s what I asked them, that I wanted an answer.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:06:28] She hasn’t gotten an answer yet, but she still loves her family and even gives them money when she can. Both Liani and Betty know that if they could go back to Venezuela, it wouldn’t be the same country they left years ago. A lot of their friends and family are scattered around the world. Institutions have changed. With so many years living abroad, they have also changed. Liani says if things get better, she wants to go back and help her country by being a professor. I think there’s a lot to do and a lot of things to offer. She says there’s lots to do to reconstruct Venezuela and she doesn’t want future generations to forget their history. It benefits a very rapid reconstruction of our country. Beti says that even though she’s waiting for her asylum case to be resolved, what she really wants is to go back to Venezuela and to be in the land where her kids were born.
Betty Nava [00:07:20] Porque nadie sale de donde feliz.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:07:22] Betty says because nobody leaves the place where they’re happy.
Betty Nava [00:07:25] And I was very happy in Venezuela.
Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vasquez [00:07:27] And she was very happy in Venezuela. I’m Greta Diaz Gonzalez Vazquez in Austin.
Jerry Quijano [00:07:40] Austin author Alejandro Puyana is a Venezuelan-American and wrote the 2025 novel Freedom is a Feast About Life in Venezuela. He reached out to Texas Standard as part of their Talk of Texas project with his own experience and thoughts on what’s been going on. He spoke with the Standard’s David Brown.
David Brown [00:08:00] Let’s begin with your reaction when you first heard the news over the weekend. I mean, on one level, it was a huge surprise. On another level, President Trump had been warning about something like this for weeks. What went through your mind in that moment when you heard the first news?
Alejandro Puyana [00:08:14] Yeah, well, I got a phone call from my mother at 2 a.m. In the morning, which is always a horrible thing to get because you don’t know what’s happened. My mom told me that they had just bombed Caracas and it was first fear and concern for loved ones and friends and family that I have living there. And then very soon after, just a deep dive into news. So immediately on WhatsApp with my best friends and with my family members. Looking into coverage and seeing what I could find. And yeah, very afraid for what could happen on one side. And also a small part of me, I think, had hope of what this could mean for the end of a regime that’s been horrible for the nation and for my people.
David Brown [00:09:03] So, wow, what a mix. Fear and hope. I know you’ve written fiction about Venezuela, but you’ve also lived this history personally. How did your experience growing up there shape the way that you have been processing?
Alejandro Puyana [00:09:19] Yeah, it’s impossible to divorce those two things. You know, when I grew up in Venezuela, like you said, when I first moved to the US, my dad was running an opposition newspaper in Venezuela called Talcual, which is still running now. And he had a lot of run-ins with the government, with the regime. He was prohibited from leaving the country. There was always a threat of, you know, of my dad possibly going. To prison as a political prisoner. So those fears were always up in the air for us, for my family, and for me leaving abroad. Me and my sister lived outside of Venezuela. It was always a looking back at home and wondering what was going to happen. So I’ve lived very personally the effects of this regime.
David Brown [00:10:12] In your talk of Texas message, you touched on the difference between wanting Maduro gone and of course your questions about how that happened, how that went down. Can you say more about that tension, you know, relief on one hand, concern on the other?
Alejandro Puyana [00:10:26] Yeah, I think I think for many Venezuelans, we are split inside, you know, on one side, we have joy and there’s a cost for celebration for the regime or for at least Maduro and Celia Flores to have been taken out of the country. I mean, they’ve they’ve done so much harm to so many people. But on the other hand, most Venezuelan understand that This is not for free, you know, Trump has his own agenda, he is in his own way. Tyrant in my point of view and is interested only in what Venezuela can give him. You know, minerals, oil, riches, whatever that may be. And the means that he’s achieving this are horrifying in certain ways. But we can’t forget also that Venezuelans have dealt with this regime for over 20 years. Desperate for anything that resembles hope. And this also provides that. So we are juggling two things. It was horrible to hear Trump’s press conference the day after the attacks, how he was going to quote unquote run Venezuela. It was repulsive. It was humiliating. So it’s a very complex place to be, I think. I think we can hold both of those things at the same time. We can hold on one hand the idea that Venezuela, this might be a path for Venezuela to be in a better space. And it also might be a path to a whole different way of oppression. And the reality is we don’t know where we’re gonna land. We just know that we are here now and we have to try to make the best of it.
David Brown [00:12:16] For other Americans and Texans who may not have close ties to Venezuela as you do, what do you think is most important to understand about this moment, especially about what comes after a leader like Maduro is removed?
Alejandro Puyana [00:12:30] First of all, we have to allow Venezuelans to feel their feelings, like they are entitled to feeling happy and joyous about a terrible dictator being deposed. That’s on one hand. On the other hand, we try to hold our leaders accountable for the actions that they’ve done. Who knows where we’re gonna be a year from now or two years from now there might be consequences for how Trump acted and how he went about things. And we have to be open to those kinds of things, but we have hold both things at the same time.
David Brown [00:13:10] We’ve been speaking with Alejandro Puyana, a Venezuelan-American writer now living in Austin. He’s the author of Freedom is a Feast, and he’s been sharing his perspective with us as part of our Talk of Texas project. Alejandro, thanks so much for joining us on the Texas Standard.
Alejandro Puyana [00:13:26] Thank you guys, thank you so much.
Jerry Quijano [00:13:34] We’re gonna have a link to all of today’s stories in our show notes. You can find those wherever you listen to your podcasts. Don’t forget to subscribe to Austin Signal. And we have more of our show over at kut.org slash signal. We’ve got more show for your Friday coming up after this break. Welcome back and thank you for tuning in. This is Austin Signal. A reminder that free week kicks off tonight. Lots of live music all around the city that is known as the live music capital of the world. Our sister station, KUTX, is hosting a showcase tonight indoors at Stubbs with music starting at seven and going past midnight. We have more in our show notes, kut.org slash signal. But let’s go back to that moniker real quick. The live music capitol of the World. Just how did Austin end up with that designation? Our ETXplain podcast answers all your questions about Austin’s people, places, and culture, and they’re celebrating 10 years of answering those questions. Today, we’re gonna go back in time a decade to an oh-so-familiar voice. Here is KUT’s Mose Buchele.
Mose Buchele [00:14:50] No matter what you think of it, you’ve got to admit it’s been effective. Even for people who don’t like music, for people have never been here. Austin and music are synonymous. You live in Chicago now, but like when you say you’re from Austin, do people bring up music? I think so. That’s Austin Brown. Yeah, his first name is Austin. He asked us a question about the live music nickname, even though he’s going to school up North. Like what are some other brands that cities have? Have been this effective. Is there a slogan in Chicago? Like a moniker? Nothing about music really, the windy city, the city of broad shoulders. But if you visit Chicago, people aren’t saying, hey, don’t miss the broad shoulders, I can’t even think if LA has a slogan. The city of angels, but that’s… Oh yeah, yeah, I don’t know exactly what that means, but I always thought it felt a little sarcastic. Austin’s more like the little town that boasts the world’s largest ball of twine. If you stop there, people are going to ask you about the twine, so here’s the question. Where did the live music capital of the world, Moniker, come from? Does it feel accurate to residents or musicians? Well, let me start by asking you, does it feel to you, do you think? Um, I don’t know. We’ll get back to that. First, a little history.
Street Crossing [00:16:15] Walk sign is on to cross Barton Springs at 1st Street.
Mose Buchele [00:16:18] A lot of people say the music scene in Austin really took root right around where I’m standing. This was around the site of the old Armadillo World headquarters. It was one of the clubs where they say Willie Nelson helped unite the hippies and the rednecks. And that encouraged a vibrant music scene to take hold that might today be called Roots Music or Americana. Nowadays, this is a surface level parking lot for a city office building. There are plenty of city staffers going in and out. But there’s no music right here. So instead of staying here and getting some weird looks, let’s take a trip up your radio dial. Yeah, there we go. We’ll find out what happened next.
Jay Trachtenberg [00:17:02] I’m Jay Trachtenberg. I’m a music host at our sister station, or your sister station KUTX.
Mose Buchele [00:17:09] That’s 98.9, Jay’s been a DJ in town for decades. I asked him what it was like back in the 70s and 80s.
Jay Tratchenburg [00:17:15] I was at a party maybe a year ago, and this guy had in his music room, he had a poster from Soap Cree.
Mose Buchele [00:17:27] That was a popular club back in the day.
Jay Tratchenburg [00:17:30] It was just a one-month post.
Mose Buchele [00:17:32] With all the acts playing there that month.
Jay Tratchenburg [00:17:34] And within this month, let’s see, Dugsong was there. Bye! Game Mouth Brown was there. Townes Van Zandt and… Well to live, to fly, all alone Hi, Delbert McClinton, Marsha Ball, Paul Ray. To see all these names on one poster from one club in one month, you look at this and you go, I can’t believe all these people were here and this was only one place. That old highway
Mose Buchele [00:18:17] The Austin Chamber of Commerce took note. One chamber pamphlet from the 70s said people were calling Austin a second Nashville. Well, the scene grew through the years to include blues, punk, New Wave. By the time South by Southwest started up, the Austin City Limits PBS show had already been around for more than a decade, and the Austin city government started to see music as a moneymaker. They created the Austin Music Commission to foster the industry in 1988, and clearly Second Nashville wasn’t gonna cut it. This is music from a woman named Lillian Standfield. Chances are you haven’t heard of her, but when it comes to the live music nickname, Standfield, who died several years ago, left a big mark.
Nancy Copland [00:19:03] I give 100% of the credit to Lillian Standfield.
Mose Buchele [00:19:06] Nancy Copland was the first chair of the Austin Music Commission. She says sometime around 1991, she got a call from Stanfield.
Nancy Copland [00:19:14] And she said, you know, I just drove back from a gig in Houston. And as I pulled into Austin and saw the Austin City Limits sign, I thought maybe we should have something that said Music Capital of Texas.
Mose Buchele [00:19:27] The Music Commission looked at how many venues there were in Austin per capita. They decided maybe live music capital was a better claim. At that time, City Councilmember Max Nofziger was Austin Music’s biggest champion at City Hall. Copeland went to him with the name.
Max Nofziger [00:19:44] And I said, well, that’s good. I like that, except this is no time to be modest. So how about if we become the music capital of the universe?
Nancy Copland [00:19:54] I said, we really have no way to gage that, Max, I’m not sure they have music on Mars.
Max Nofziger [00:20:01] I said, well, let the Martians be damned. You know, they can invade us or vaporize us, whatever they would do. But I think it’d be worth it. And she said, you probably couldn’t get that past your city council colleagues. So we compromised on Austin, the live music capital of the world. And brought it to a vote.
Mose Buchele [00:20:17] At City Hall and that means if you look through City Council archives you can find the exact moment in history August 29th 1991 when Austin proclaimed itself the live music capital of the world I found a recording of that moment so I don’t know if you want to give it a listen I’d love to get your reaction sure and emailed it to our question asker Austin Brown here I’ll play it right now
Austin City Council [00:20:45] Under items from council, number 46, approve a resolution declaring the city of Austin the live music capital of the world. 47. Approve a resolution. Here it goes on for a while. And upon task force members. So the consent motion will be item 46 and 47. Discussion on those? Hearing none, all in favor say aye. Aye. Show those approved.
Austin Brown [00:21:10] It’s a little anti-climactic.
Mose Buchele [00:21:14] Yeah, yeah, I thought it was kind of low-key too. They’re just like, yeah sure, why not? Let’s go for it. Maybe I should add some music in to give it a little more oomph. I feel like it ought to be Willie Nelson, right? Sure. Turn out the lights. The party’s over. There was one final piece to his question. What do people think of the nickname? Back in the 90s, there was some skepticism. These days, maybe even more so. Even Max Nofziger thinks it might not be accurate anymore. Austin’s just become too expensive for a lot of musicians to live here. It would be one way to prove it for sure if you could find that old survey the city did to show how many clubs were here and compare it to today. The Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau that now owns the live music capital Trademark says it doesn’t have that survey. I’m gonna keep looking for it, but until then, The truthfulness of Austin’s live music claim. Might just depend on who’s listening.
Music [00:22:17] And tomorrow starts the same old thing again
Jerry Quijano [00:22:25] KUT’s Mose Buchele reporting that story. And hey, if you’ve got a question about Austin that you want answered, why not ask it? You can do so at KUT.org. Well, that’s it for Austin Signal this week. Thank you for listening. And if you missed anything or if you wanna send something you heard to a friend, you can find more at Kut.org slash signal. Kristen Cabrera is our managing producer and Rayna Sevilla is our technical director. This is Austin Signal and we will talk to you on Monday. Have a great weekend.
This transcript was transcribed by AI, and lightly edited by a human. Accuracy may vary. This text may be revised in the future.
