Brita has officially teamed up with SXSW to encourage a passionate community of music artists and fans to pledge to reduce waste in Austin, Texas and beyond. The partnership with SXSW is the next step in Brita’s mission to empower artists and fans to make small changes that will have a positive impact on the environment.

If you're looking to take a break from the bustle of downtown, head to the SXSW Urban Oasis Presented by Brita® to relax, rehydrate and recharge using clean solar power in the comfort of the environmentally responsible lounge. This annual favorite (formerly known as the Green Zone) is centrally-located at 7th and Red River in the heart of SXSW Music, offering free Brita FilterForGood® Nalgene bottles and filtered water, a solar-powered cell phone charging station, plenty of seating, shade, greenery and more. Brita® eliminates the need for nearly 10,000 disposable bottles at the 2013 SXSW Urban Oasis.

Jared Leto to Speak at SXSW Music Conference

SXSW Music Conference is excited to announce that actor and 30 Seconds To Mars frontman Jared Leto will speak TOMORROW, Wed. March 13 at 2:00PM. Jared will sit down with Chris Kantrowitz of Gobbler to discuss ARTIFACT, a film about the making of the band's album This is War and their subsequent battle with label EMI, and his directorial debut film, showing at SXSW Film. Leto will also share his recent forays into the startup/tech world, where he's spearheaded the streaming live music broadcast venture, VyRT.

Please join us for this special session.

SPIN is back at SXSW for four nights of showcases and three days of parties at Easy Tiger! And of course the perennial SPIN at Stubbs party is back on Friday afternoon.

SXSW Music and Platinum Badges, Wristbands, and Artist Wristbands will receive priority access to the SPIN daytime events, but an RSVP is required. RSVP now for SPIN House and SPIN at Stubbs while there's still space available! (RSVP not required for Badges and Wristbands to attend SPIN's nighttime showcases at Easy Tiger.)

Bruce Sterling

Today we have a host of exciting streaming programming available for your viewing pleasure. Yes, every day SXSW brings the conference and festival to your computer place, so grab some popcorn and have a gander at…

What do ghost hunters, puppets and some of the top musical acts at SXSW have in common? All will be hosted by Yahoo! At Brazos Hall.
 
Today Yahoo! announced the launch of The Fuzz, a new original comedy web series about puppet cops at SXSW following a great watch party last night. Tomorrow join Yahoo! for a watch party for Ghost Ghirls, another web comedy, but this one is about two ditzy ghost hunters, which will include an appearance by Jack Black and a performance by Tenacious D (there will be a limited capacity for the watch party, early arrival encouraged). 

Kathleen Hanna at The Punk Singer screening on March 10. photo by Jesse Knish/Wire Image

Welcome to the first official day of the SXSW Music and Media Conference and Festival. Ohh, Interactive and Film are still going on, still groovy, and there are bitchin' screenings going on throughout the week.

2013 SXSW Showcasing Band Krewella - Live @ VEVO TV Control Room

VEVO always has a blast at SXSW, and our 2013 parties are no different. This week all sorts of action can be found at the VEVO TV Control Room. They’ve got a huge announcement for you on Tuesday afternoon. The hot L.A. sister act HAIM are our special guests on Tuesday night, and on Wednesday the crazed EDM of Krewella will turn the place upside down. DJ Earworm is on hand to keep bodies moving during the entire stretch. Visual art is part of the scene as well. Famed artist Shepard Fairey is installing a mural on the west wall of the Control Room – he’ll reveal it on Wednesday. And NYC’s IndieWalls crew will also paint live throughout the week. Here’s a schedule breakdown of where you need to be.

photo by Jessica Lehrman

Have you ever gotten scabies from a hotel room? Fat Tony has. 

Fat Tony (government name: Anthony Obi) hails from Houston, Texas. When he isn't busy eating lemongrass tofu or being a regular customer at Whataburger, he can be found concocting some of the dopest underground raps today. His effortless delivery over his oft-collaboration partner Tom Cruz's hypnotic tracks show why Fat Tony has racked up nods from A$AP Rocky and Bun B to the Houston Music Press Awards as a three-time winner of their "Best Underground Hip Hop" title.

Brent Grulke with Smokey Robinson and Roland Swenson

Last August we lost our friend and colleague, Creative Director Brent Grulke. Brent was a legendary figure whose love for music motivated much of what he did.

SXSW is excited to partner with Nike this year. Follow @NikeFuel to see how the Nike+ community is using the Nike+ FuelBand at SXSW. Life is a sport and, whether it's going for a morning run, walking to the local BBQ, rushing to the next panel, or dancing the night away, we look forward to seeing who can make it count during their time here.

 #SXSWCOUNTS