Side Door has partnered with SXSW in a project aptly titled Side Door to SXSW, which will book curated tours for six selected SXSW showcasing artists travelling to Austin, Texas for this year’s festival and conference. Each touring experience will be documented along the road, culminating with an official Side Door to SXSW showcase on 18 March 2022 at the Drafting Room.
It can be challenging for artists to afford the expense of getting to SXSW, let alone generate interest for their showcases. In partnership with SXSW, Side Door will work with selected artists and their teams to set up shows in Side Door “Spaces” en route to Austin, amplifying their journey by pairing them with photographers and videographers at each tour stop.
Artists Abstract Rude, Bad Waitress, Gully Boys, JUNACO, S.C.A.B, and Status/Non-Status will be kicking off the tour in early March and making multiple stops from home cities on their way to Austin for the showcase. Hosts and venues are encouraged to sign up to be a part of the tour as dates are still available in New York, New Mexico, Louisiana, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Tennessee, Georgia, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona, and DC.
The campaign was originally slated for SXSW 2020, but was delayed due to COVID-19 cancellations. Side Door to SXSW’s tours and showcases are part of Side Door’s mission to help artists reclaim in-person tour bookings in a post-pandemic world with even greater limitations for performance spaces than prior.
As tour stops are being finalised, Side Door is encouraging anybody excited by the prospect of hosting touring artists in their space to build a Space profile and/or get in touch. Side Door provides nearly 5,000 artists and 2,000 hosts the tools to produce and ticket intimate shows in non-traditional performance spaces like backyards, bookstores, record stores, and warehouses.
