South By Southwest is about to get a massive dose of stardom. The notably low key, independent festival will be taken over by Apple. Today (Feb. 19), the company announced it would be bringing its iTunes Festival to the United States via Austin, Tex., and five nights of massive shows.
The first American iTunes Festival will take place from March 11 to 15 at ACL Live at the Moody Theater, according to Apple.
Only the festival's (presumed) headliners have been announced thus far and it's a mixed bag of huge stadium acts. Coldplay, Imagine Dragons, Pitbull, Keith Urban and ZEDD will all take the stage in Austin, eclipsing smaller acts who flock to the city every year for a bit of exposure.
More iTunes Festival acts will be announced in coming days.
"We're excited about the incredible lineup of artists performing and SXSW is the perfect place to debut the first iTunes Festival in the US," said Apple Senior Vice President Eddy Cue in a statement.
According to SXSW's website, those who are already registered for the music portion of SXSW will be able to enter a drawing to win tickets to the iTunes Festival shows.
For those who are unable to make the trek to Austin, the American iTunes Festival will be streamed live in the iTunes Store via an iPhone, iPod or computer.
The iTunes Festival comes to the US after seven years of month long stretches in London. This year, London performers included Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake and Arctic Monkeys, as well as basically every other huge name in music.
