‘Austin City Limits’ Expands Season 52 to 18 Episodes With Full-Hour Artist Shows

Austin City Limits will give every artist a full-hour episode when season 52 premieres in September. This marks the first time in the PBS series' history that each performer gets an entire hour. The new approach expands the season to 18 episodes, five more than before.

The show has hosted hundreds of performances since its 1974 debut. Many episodes split an hour between two acts. Starting with Season 52, each performer will take center stage in a dedicated hour-long broadcast. "Austin City Limits has always been about giving artists a stage where the music comes first and giving audiences the opportunity to discover great artists and experience unforgettable performances. Expanding every episode to a full hour gives each artist the space to tell their complete story, and it gives our audience the chance to experience them the way they were meant to be seen and heard," said ACL Executive Producer Terry Lickona on the Austin City Limits website.

Season 52 is the first season produced through community support after federal funding ended in 2025. The series is one of the few national platforms where viewers can watch live, uninterrupted, full-length music performances on TV.

Carlos Vives y La Provincia will open the season on Sept. 4. The 18-time Latin GRAMMY winner will perform with his 11-piece band.

Olivia Rodrigo will play her first full-set live performance of her chart-topping album, you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love. The three-time GRAMMY Award winner last appeared in Season 47 in 2021.

Billy Strings will deliver highlights from his GRAMMY-winning album, Highway Prayers, in his second appearance since Season 47. Miguel will play songs from CAOS, his first album in eight years.

Debuts will include British singer Sienna Spiro, a country-roc group called The Red Clay Strays, 19-year-old Austin native Ty Myers, R&B singer-songwriter Ari Lennox, and Colombian-American singer Sebastián Yatra. A special episode will feature highlights from the 25th Annual Americana Honors at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium with Robert Plant, Tyler Childers, Margo Price, I'm With Her, and Mumford & Sons.