Despite the fact that he recently retired from 23 years in state government (or maybe because of it), Andy Smith and I take a break from politics in our recent conversation. Instead Andy tells stories of his years reporting on and later working for SXSW, starting as a reporter for the Austin American Statesman in the early 90s and later as editor of SXSW magazine from 2006-2020. From Big Freedia to a determined band from Uzbekistan, he recalls some of his favorite personalities, musicians and a giant nacho cheese chip brand activation. He also shares his thoughts about the evolution of SXSW from a scrappy music festival, to its many iterations, to what the future may hold for it.

Andy is the coauthor of SXSW Scrapbook: People and Things That Went Before (2011) documenting 25 years of SX, a great pickup if you'd like to take a deeper dive into the  subject matter. He also a musician, so take a wonderful trip down the Daylight Titans (his band) rabbit hole on Bandcamp or YouTube.