KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts
KUT and KUTX news and music podcasts for Austin, Texas and beyond
It’s the last week of 2025, and we’re reflecting on the year of news here in Austin, including:
Resolution in a decades-long cold case known as the Yogurt Shop Murders.
The summer’s deadly flooding in Austin and Central Texas.
School campuses set to shutter across the city.
We’re also taking a look at the status of Austin’s housing market heading into the new year.
Plus: Another favorite track from 2025, and a look at some of the artists we lost this year.
Austin has reached a four-year, $63 million contract deal with the city’s firefighters, ending months of negotiations with the Austin Firefighters Association.
Calling all bird enthusiasts: Texas Standard’s Raul Alonzo explains what a bird count is, why it matters, and how you can take part.
KUTX’s Confucius Jones, one half of hip-hop podcast The Breaks, shares his favorite song of the year.
Plus: If you’re looking for TV shows to watch over the holidays, Jennifer Morgan, the ATX TV Festival’s head of programming, joins us with some picks.
The City of Austin cut $95 million from its budget, shrinking funding to parks, homelessness services and more after voters rejected Prop Q. We’ll get into how these cuts may impact you.
With recent rain and an overnight flood watch in Travis, Williamson, and Hays counties, many residents are reminded of the July 4 floods and the ongoing efforts to rebuild.
Plus, art groups seeking affordable studio space find sanctuary in a downtown Austin church. We’ve got more on how they secured the space and what that means for the arts community.
Also, Jason Mellard shares a new story from the archive of Texas music history.
What does it mean for Austin artists to take the stage at the city’s biggest music festival? This episode features conversations with SL Houser, Geto Gala, and Next of Kin as they share their journeys to Austin City Limits Music Festival, reflect on what it means to perform in their hometown, and talk about what’s next for their music.
Pause/Play is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.
You can support our work by donating at supportthispodcast.org.
According to the Austin Music Census, 38% of the people who took the survey struggled to find affordable housing.
We take a look at the Metropolis Apartments, a complex that has been providing affordable housing for musicians and creatives for over 20 years.
Pause/Play is made possible by listeners like you. You can support the work that Pause/Play does by making a donation at supportthispodcast.org.
Advocates are raising awareness for Texas’ Safe Haven Laws. Also known as the “Baby Moses” Act, the law allows babies who are 60 days or younger to be safely surrendered to staff at places like hospitals and fire departments. We’ll hear more from KUT’s Olivia Aldridge.
We’ll also hear how students at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired learn how to get around the city safely. It’s a process called orientation and mobility training. Texas Standard’s Sean Saldana breaks it all down for us.
Plus, we’ll hear from an Austin native, Dr. Cheryl Clark-Brown, who shares her journey into medicine and her dedication to giving back to the community that helped raised her. That conversation comes from the Black Austin Matters podcast.
Miles Bloxson is in the hosts chair today on Austin Signal.
The Live Music Fund is about to launch applications for its third round of funding. Hear what’s changed with the fund over the years, and what will be new with this next iteration.
Erica Shamaly, Division Manager for Music and Entertainment within the Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment Division, is featured in this episode.
Find out more on the City of Austin’s Live Music Fund web page.
Find out more information about the Museum of Human Achievement’s Grant Writing Hangouts.
Pause/Play is made possible by listeners like you. You can support the work that Pause/Play does by making a donation at supportthispodcast.org.
In preparation for our upcoming update episode about the Live Music Fund, we revisit this episode from 2022, which tells the story of how the framework for the first Live Music Fund was developed.
Find out more about the Live Music Fund on the City of Austin’s website.
Pause/Play is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.
You can support our work by donating at supportthispodcast.org.
South by Southwest is changing. The festival has been shortened to 7 days. There is no dedicated music weekend. The convention center is being renovated and won’t be finished for 3 years. So what will music at SXSW 2026 look like? Brian Hobbs, VP of Music at SXSW, sits down to talk about the future of the festival.
Pause/Play is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.
You can support our work by donating at supportthispodcast.org.
Terry Lickona, Executive Producer of the Austin City Limits TV show, joins hosts Elizabeth McQueen and Miles Bloxson to talk about how cuts to federal funding for public media are impacting the show.
Learn more about Congress’s decision to rescind over 1 billion dollars it had previously allocated for public media.
You can donate to Austin City Limits by going to austinpbs.org/donate.
You can support Pause/Play by heading to supportthispodcast.org
AI is a hot topic right now, but how will it impact music? We discuss everything from fake bands getting millions of listens to a legendary producer vouching for the use of AI to lawsuits by major music groups against AI music generation programs.
In the latest episode, we dive into how Austin musicians are using the tool or staying away. Hear from Chinasa Broxton and Carlos Dashawn Daniels Moore of Tribe Mafia, Walker Lukens, Lauren Bruno, Jonny Johnson, Zeale and Erin Walter share their thoughts on the future of AI and music.
Tell us what you think about AI and Music
Pause/Play is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.
You can support our work by donating at supportthispodcast.org.
In the latest episode of Black Austin Matters, Lisa and Rich chat with Ballet Afrique founder and contemporary dancer China Smith.
China takes us on a joyful stroll down memory lane, sharing what she loved about growing up in Austin and why her community means so much to her. She talks about how her time in the Bay Area shaped her, the music that moves her, and why movement is so important for our physical, emotional, and spiritual health — no dance skills required!
She also emphasizes the importance of taking care of your body and shares her passion for a vegan lifestyle.
Social media has completely changed how musicians share their work and connect with fans — but not everyone is here for the endless scroll. Some artists are over it and have even ditched it altogether.
In this episode, we dive into the love-hate relationship musicians have with social media. Hear from Chinasa Broxton, Carlos Dashawn Daniels Moore of Tribe Mafia, Walker Lukens, Sara L. Houser, and Robert Ellis as they dish on how they do — or don’t — use these platforms to build their careers and stay true to their art.
Pay for musicians in Austin has stayed the same for decades, and streaming often doesn’t bring in my money. So if you can’t make money playing music and you can’t make money selling music, what can you do?
You’ll hear how Sara L. Houser, Chinasa Broxton and Carlos Dashawn Daniels Moore from Tribe Mafia, and Carrie Rodriguez figured out how to make a living in music by expanding their ideas of what they can do with music.
Find out more about Laboratorio Arts.
The world is shifting faster than ever, and for many, the future feels more uncertain than clear. In season six of Pause/Play, we are taking a look at the future of Austin’s music scene. We’ll talk about how artists are making a living by exploring multiple creative avenues. We talk to artists who are reimagining fan connections beyond social media and who are dreaming up alternatives to the major streaming services. We’ll dive into how musicians are embracing (or rejecting) AI, what’s ahead for the Live Music Fund, and—of course – what the next generation of Austin musicians is up to.
Pause/Play is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.
You can support our work by donating at supportthispodcast.org.
We’re looking at what happens to small towns like Lockhart when a bunch of Austin musicians seeking affordable places to live move there.
You’ll hear from musician Emily Gimble, musician and co-owner of Fiddler’s Green Jenn Miori Hodges, co-founders Courthouse Nights and Rach and Rhodes presents Rachel Lingvai and Will Rhodes, musician Pierson Saxon and founders of Duett’s in Martindale, Texas Ryan and Katie Grametbaur.
SXSW started in 1987 as a regional music festival in Austin. You’ll hear how it started and how it changed over the years from the perspectives of some of the musicians who’ve played it. You’ll also learn about what changed because of musician protests, what SXSW was like in Sydney, Australia, and what the festival might look like in the future.
Check out this flier from the first SXSW
There should be a new episode of Pause/Play this week. But, we got hit by a mix of travel, COVID, and unforeseen circumstances. So there’s no episode right now. But there will be in two weeks!
In the next episode, you’ll hear about the history of SXSW, and how it’s changed over the years.
And in the episode after that, you’ll hear about what happens when people leave Austin and start music scenes in towns around Austin.
We want to hear from you — do you live in a town close to Austin with a new thriving music scene or have you been to a show where you least expected to see live music? We’d love it if you would send us a voice memo about your experience!
You can leave a message at kutkutx.studio/contactpauseplay, email us at pauseplay@kut.org or you can leave us a message on Instagram — our handle is @pauseplaypod
LGBTQIA+ members of Austin’s music scene talk about how proposed bans on drag performances, and laws outlawing gender-affirming care for minors are impacting their work and their lives.
You’ll hear from co-owner of Cheer Up Charlies Maggie Lea. Plus you’ll hear from Austin musicians Caleb de Casper, Lizzy Lehman, Pelvis Wrestley’s Jammy Violet, and writer/musician Jack Kaulfus.
Women from the Austin music scene talk about how the Texas abortion ban is impacting their lives.
You’ll hear from music publicist Adrienne Lake, membership manager at The Recording Academy Amanda Garcia Davenport, Cassandra Shankman, aka DJ Cassandra, event producer Cheyenne Doer and songwriter, rapper and producer Qi Dada, who is one-half of the Austin hip-hop duo Riders Against the Storm.