ACL ’26 DAY 2
Austin City Limits’ Second Day Pays Back
Young Miko performs at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Charles Reagan / ACL Fest.
After a muddy first day at Zilker Metropolitan Park, and after a delay in opening the doors to make it possible to leave the venue in better shape, the second day of ACL brought once again an incredible lineup, better weather and a day that, in my opinion, paid back Day 1.
AUSTIN | By Pablo Herrera
Doors at Zilker were delayed for a couple of hours, which forced the cancellation of the first gigs of the day, but nothing traumatic. For our team, the day started simply by doing journalism, with our interview with the Q Brothers: JQ and his son JJ, the 12-year-old rapper visiting ACL for the second time in a row after their viral dinosaur freestyle.
We had an incredible chat, to be released soon on our platforms, and it was a conversation that found us on incredible common ground with the Q Brothers collective. JQ told us about the creative philosophy of the group and why they think intergenerational work is fundamental in order to give the new generation the level of participation they deserve in society.
We are 100% aligned with that vision at TMN, where we believe youth should not be infantilized with the “student thing” — student content, student bands, student-whatever-you-imagine — or the silliness of “by teens, for teens,” which condemns young creatives and their work to a limited part of the population.
It was an incredible talk, with a short rap included — see the video below — and stay tuned to our Watch Vista section for the full interview coming soon.
Watch: JQ and JJ of the Q Brothers freestyle during our conversation at ACL Fest 2026. Photo & Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
After the Q Brothers, live music had to wait for a bit because we had to stay at the press lounge for our conversation with Elijah Delgado, the Austin singer-songwriter making waves in the region, who had performed the day before at the Snapchat stage.
I had an incredible conversation with Elijah, with whom, again, I felt particularly connected because of the way he frames artistry, creation and, more importantly, the process of becoming a professional artist. He released an EP this summer called Wherever You Go, There You Are, with five songs that are worth spending some time listening to.
Watch: Austin singer-songwriter Elijah Delgado talks with TMN at ACL Fest 2026. Photo & Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
We also had the incredible opportunity to have a quick chat with Palace, who were signing records at the Waterloo tent, and took the opportunity to get a picture with them. Palace is one of those bands we were waiting to see — they were already on our agenda for the day — and one I had seen many times in New York and while living in Washington, DC, but never thought I would randomly run into them.
Their set was impeccable as usual, and I felt particularly gifted with the opportunity to meet the band members, take some pictures and chat with them.
Palace. Photo: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
After this exciting beginning, the first big concert was Suki Waterhouse, and I have to say she did not disappoint me. It is not my type of music, but she is very talented — no doubt — and her set was particularly well done. Still with the mud situation around our feet, people were particularly happy with her set.
“I was waiting for this since the lineup was announced,” a fan told us, super excited.
Watch: Suki Waterhouse performs at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Dusana Karam / ACL Fest. Video: pablo Herrera / TMN.
My discovery of the day was Puerto Rican artist Young Miko, who I did not know and who incredibly surprised me. She is what reggaeton, perreo and whatever else can be, with dancers on stage, full-body tattoos and explicit lyrics that may feel a bit scary if you understand Spanish. “Mueve tu culo” — like “shake your ass” — is the kind of thing at the core of some of the lyrics.
This sort of language is something very common in the perreo room, something I laugh about with Americans not understanding the Spanish language and defending musicians like Bad Bunny as diverse and progressive — that's because they never tasted fully the sexism of some of those lyrics — the “te voy a matar, mami, si te agarro” kind of thing.
But other than that, and despite my particular preference for not liking this genre that much, Young Miko appears to be positioned to earn a spot in the American artistry thing.
Watch: Young Miko performs at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Charles Reagan / ACL Fest. Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
Arcy Drive was the indie-band discovery of the day. According to Rolling Stone, the Long Island band is becoming a festival must-see. Well, I do not know if a band should become a “must-see” to be something, but it was OK. An indie band with some sort of garage vibe that, in any case, was worth seeing.
Watch: Arcy Drive performs at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Roger Ho / ACL Fest. Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
To continue with the day, there were two big ones: Bleachers at the T-Mobile stage and Lola Young at the American Express.
Jack Antonoff was, I have to be honest, incredible. I am not particularly a fan of his music, but the New Jersey band is a band like those you can't easily find: great musicians, simple chords, emotionally charged lyrics and raw energy. Antonoff and peers do not have to force anything they do. They just do it.
Watch: Bleachers perform at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Pooneh Ghana / ACL Fest. Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
Then Lola Young was emphatic, loud at some points, sweet, and it was a set really worth seeing. The last time I saw her was last March at Rolling Stone’s Future of Music at SXSW, also in Austin, and this set, compared with that one at the Moody Theater, was much more energetic and compelling.
Lola and Antonoff were, until now, two of the best shows I had experienced so far.
Watch: Lola Young performs at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Chad Wadsworth / ACL Fest. Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
Before going into the last part of the day, we went to the BeatBox stage to check out Snow Strippers, the electronic duo making waves. I was curious to check out that energy and was not disappointed, although I have to say I expected something a bit more sophisticated. But their gig was worth seeing, and I now have the tools to understand their following.
Watch: Snow Strippers perform at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Roger Ho / ACL Fest. Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
To close, Lorde came. I have to say, I’m not a Lorde fan, but her show was impressive. An incredible setup combining images of her own pulse — she had electrodes connected to her body — showing the public her heartbeat and creating a show from there.
Lorde is growing up, and with that, all her narrative goes beyond the lyrics and sound. It is, with no doubt, the universe she is able to create, the balance between melody and electronic, the contrasts, her image and her connection with her fans. Ending her tour at ACL and being there to witness that was a privilege.
Watch: Lorde performs at ACL Fest 2026. Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
Before leaving the park, we still had time to check out RÜFÜS DU SOL. We did it from the distance — check the video — but it was worth it to close the day in such a way.
Watch: RÜFÜS DU SOL performs at ACL Fest 2026. Photo: Nathan Zucker / ALC Fest. Video: Pablo Herrera / TMN.
ACL Day 2 was a new experience that paid back Day 1, not because Day 1 was bad — on the contrary — but because after an accidental festival start, Day 2 seemed to be all that Day 1 was not able to promise.
I said yesterday in my first-day recap that things that start with accidents, for some reason, always end up correcting themselves. I’m glad for that.
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