Fort Worth's music scene is blowing up, as more artists are making a name for themselves on the national stage.
On Thursday, the city's convention and visitors bureau announced a lineup of 13 musicians who will showcase the city's growing talent at the Austin music festival South by Southwest. It's another push to raise Fort Worth's profile around the country.
The city's growing music scene is full of color and texture.
"Very eclectic right now," said Sam Anderson, of well-known Fort Worth band, the Quaker City Night Hawks.
"Oh, my gosh, happening," added country singer Summer Dean.
Soul singer Abraham Alexander calls the city's scene, "A boiling pot of amazing soup."
"It was hidden, but there are so many artists that are blazing forth that you can't really hide it anymore," Alexander said.
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Now that mix of talent is heading to South by Southwest with an all-Fort Worth house showcasing the city's creativity from music, to technology and beyond.
"When you've got an Uber flying taxi being developed by Bell Helicopter and the best whiskey in Texas, we're going to put it all together," said Mitch Whitten, vice president of marketing for the Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The city's marketers are looking for ways to raise the Fort Worth profile and draw in more big business, and they see the city's talented young musicians as a calling card.
"The ability for a community to thrive, to attract talent, to drive innovation, to attract corporations, it's all about creativity," said Brandom Gengelbach, executive vice president of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce.
Creativity breeds itself, and the artists can feel that momentum building.
"People are coming to Fort Worth to play music instead of leaving to go play music," Dean said.
"It's the artistic mouth of the city," Anderson added. "This is kind of how we explain ourselves to people not from here."
More and more, people are listening.
Here's a full list of the Fort Worth artists performing at South by Southwest in March:
Bonnie Bishop and the Texas Gentlemen, Summer Dean, Vincent Neil Emmerson, Abraham Alexander, Josh Halverson, Joey Green, Austin Allsup, Jake Paleschic, Lou Charles, Ronnie Heart, Grady Spencer & the Work, Vaden Todd Lewis – lead singer of the Toadies, and Quaker City Night Hawks.
