Unofficial SXSW Showcase in East Austin Raises Money for Prison Education Program

For the fourth year running, an unofficial South by Southwest showcase in East Austin is being used to raise money for people who cannot attend the festival: inmates at a women's correctional facility in Lockhart.

The event is organized by Nicholas Reyes, an assistant professor of mathematics at UT Austin. He began volunteering as a teacher at the prison in 2019 through the Texas Prison Education Initiative, known as TPEI, which offers free college courses taught by volunteer graduate students and university professors.

Reyes is also a familiar name in Austin music, performing as Nicky Christmas. He began playing around town as a UT student, and his first major show was at South by Southwest in 2015. Three years later he started hosting free unofficial showcases during the festival each year. He said official South By programming draws many out-of-town acts, while unofficial shows give bands extra chances to perform. "This was the biggest thing that I threw every year," he said.

In 2022, Reyes turned the event into a fundraiser for TPEI, saying he cared about his students and saw a benefit concert as a practical way to help. About two-thirds of the money collected goes to the musicians and the rest to the program, though bands often donate their share as well. Past shows have brought in between $600 and more than $1,000 for TPEI.

Dorothy Rau, TPEI's program coordinator and its only paid employee, said the organization relies entirely on outside funding. That covers items such as paper and pencils as well as enrollment fees. "We have about a hundred students every semester," they said. "We have to pay to register them at the university, so that they can get that college credit and transcript once they get out."

Rau said the credits can help students continue their education or demonstrate experience on job applications after release, and the classes also build confidence. They added that the courses offer enjoyment "in an environment where there's often a lack of things that are enjoyable." Reyes said the donations go a long way toward school supplies, noting that students pay for nothing in the classes.

The program once leaned heavily on grants but is now funded mostly through donations. "An organization like this is really hard to sustain," Rau said, adding that fundraising takes time and energy that could go toward teaching, recruiting volunteers and starting new classes. The benefit show is one of two annual fundraisers for TPEI and its only in-person event.

Sunday's lineup at Sahara Lounge features bands only from Texas and New York. Earlier editions drew mostly international acts, including a large group of Mexican bands in the first three years, but Reyes said those bands are no longer traveling to Texas. Five of this year's eight acts are from Austin.

Matt Galceran, singer and lead guitarist of the band Queen Serene, said this year's festival feels "like a locals kind of festival as opposed to like this giant international thing." Sarah Ronan, the band's lead singer, said unofficial shows help foster community. "The lineups are curated, and there's just heart and soul actually put into it," she said.

Reyes hopes to continue the show indefinitely and may add a second one in the winter. Rau said the event combines much of what they like about Austin: seeing favorite bands, spending time with friends and supporting a cause they care about.