South by South Lawn

Technology festival at the White House

South by South Lawn

White House with SXSL sign in foreground, part of the South by South Lawn festival

Date| October 3, 2016 (2016-10-03)
Duration| 1 day
Venue| White House
Location| White House South Lawn
Organised by| Obama administration, South by Southwest, President's Committee on Arts and Humanities, Futurism

South by South Lawn (stylized SXSL) was a technology and music festival organized by the White House under the Obama administration that took place in October 2016 in Washington, D.C. It was modelled after the South by Southwest music festival.

## Background

[edit]

South by South Lawn was a technology and music festival[1][2] initiated by the Obama administration.[3] It was modelled after and co-organised by the South by Southwest festival,[4][5] President's Committee on Arts and Humanities,[6] and tech media company Futurism.[7] It was hosted on the South Lawn of the White House,[8][9] and was live streamed.[10] Announced in September 2016 by the White House, the festival took place on October 3.[11]

The first festival to be staged at the White House,[12] it was considered by the Times columnist Carol Midgley to be "the coolest event of the year" and "better than a ticket to the Oscars".[13] The New York Times considered the event "like the swan song of the first president who seemed to get it — “it” being the value of start-up culture"[14] while Pitchfork, sharing similar views, wrote that it felt "idyllically removed from the present political tire fire".[15] The festival was noted by the LA Times in a December 2016 retrospective as reflecting "many of the cultural shifts that happened during the Obama presidency."[16]

The festival had panel discussions and exhibits relating to sustainability, climate change, and technology. One exhibit comprised a virtual reality experience by the Guardian and The Mill that showcased the sensation of spending nine minutes in solitary confinement, while another was mounted by the American toy company Sphero and allowed visitors to play with robots. The SXSL sign was programmed by Adam Savage to light up every time someone made a social media post with the hashtag #sxsl.[17]

### Climate change panel

[edit]

The main event of the festival was a climate change panel led by President Obama that featured guest speakers actor Leonardo DiCaprio and the Canadian climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe.[17] This also included the domestic premiere[18][19] of DiCaprio's National Geographic climate documentary Before the Flood.[20][21] The panel was considered "stirring" and "passionate" by The Independent chief film critic Clarisse Loughrey.[22]

## Musical guests

[edit]

In late September 2016, President Barack Obama announced the musical line-up for South by South Lawn.[23]

* The Lumineers
* Gallant[10]
* the Dap-Kings[a]
* DJ Beverly Bond[25]

## Attendance

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Attendees were chosen through a nomination process where attendees must have made positive impacts in their communities.[26] More than 20,000 attendees were nominated to attend.[17] "A few thousand people" attended according to The New York Times[14] out of 24,000 applicants.[24]

## Notes

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1. ^ Sharon Jones was announced for the event, but was unable to attend due to illness and was replaced by Gallant.[10][24]

## References

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1. ^ Overly, Steven (October 4, 2016). "South By South Lawn tech, music festival loosens up the White House". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
2. ^ Sylla, Sophie (2016-10-04). "The White House Holds the First Ever South by South Lawn Festival". Global Citizen. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
3. ^ "South by South Lawn". The White House. Archived from the original on May 24, 2017. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
4. ^ Pilkington, Ed; Spencer, Jane (2016-10-04). "The Obama White House hosts the first – and last? – SXSL technology festival". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
5. ^ Moore, Sam (2016-09-02). "President Barack Obama to hold mini SXSW festival at the White House". NME. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
6. ^ "Inspired by SXSW, Obama announces South by South Lawn Festival". KVUE. 2016-09-01. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
7. ^ "Futurism". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
8. ^ "Celebrities, innovators head to D.C. for the first ever South by South Lawn". SiriusXM. 2016-09-30. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
9. ^ Dickey, Megan Rose (2016-10-04). "Here's what happened at South by South Lawn at the White House". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
10. ^ a b c Monroe, Jazz (2016-10-03). "Live Stream the White House and SXSW Festival South by South Lawn". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
11. ^ Schneider, Marc (2016-09-02). "White House Announces 'South By South Lawn,' SXSW-Inspired Micro Festival". Billboard. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
12. ^ Britton, Luke Morgan (2016-10-04). "'Stranger Things' kids attend President Obama's White House music festival". NME. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
13. ^ Midgley, Carol (2024-07-13). "Obama's music festival". The Times. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
14. ^ a b Wortham, Jenna (2016-10-25). "Obama Brought Silicon Valley to Washington". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
15. ^ Anderson, Stacey (2016-10-13). "The Presidential Suite: A Look Back at Obama's Musical Milestones". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
16. ^ Ochoa, Laurie (2016-12-15). "2016 moment: The day Barack Obama turned the White House into a rock and tech fest". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
17. ^ a b c Bajohr, Donny (October 5, 2016). "Here's What You Missed At the White House's First-Ever South By South Lawn Festival". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
18. ^ Benac, Nancy (October 3, 2016). "Barack Obama, Leonardo DiCaprio urge action on climate change at South by South Lawn". Global News. The Associated Press. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
19. ^ Gelt, Jessica (2016-10-03). "South by South Lawn: LACMA's Michael Govan to talk with James Turrell and David Adjaye at White House festival". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
20. ^ Billboard, Gil Kaufman (2016-09-26). "Leonardo DiCaprio, 'Stranger Things' Cast Set for President Obama's South by South Lawn Fest". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
21. ^ Kiefer, Halle (2016-10-04). "Leonardo DiCaprio Comes Out Hot Against Climate-Change Deniers: 'You Should Not Be Able to Hold Public Office'". Vulture. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
22. ^ Loughrey, Clarisse (October 4, 2016). "Watch Leonardo DiCaprio and President Obama go hard on climate change at SXSL". The Independent. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
23. ^ Edelman, Julia (2016-09-25). "President Obama Plans His Own South by South Lawn Festival, Invites Leonardo DiCaprio and the Kids From Stranger Things". Vulture. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
24. ^ a b Wichard-Edds, Adrienne (2016-10-04). "President Obama Welcomes Common, Leonardo DiCaprio & The Lumineers to His Backyard for Inaugural South by South Lawn". Billboard. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
25. ^ Earls, John (2016-09-26). "President Obama announces line-up for first festival at The White House". NME. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
26. ^ Coulehan, Erin (2016-09-26). "Commander in cool: Obama's upcoming South by South Lawn festival is one more reason he'll be missed". Salon. Retrieved 2024-05-17.