Contributors

Andy Langer

Writer-at-large Andy Langer has written about music for Texas Monthly since 1997. He also hosted the magazine’s National Podcast of Texas, an interview-based podcast spotlighting Texas news-makers, entertainers, authors, legends, and rising stars, from Nolan Ryan to Brooklyn Decker, Tanya Tucker to Senator Ted Cruz, Admiral William McRaven to Dan Rather. By way of Texas Monthly’s partnership with the New York Times, Langer was the music columnist for the paper’s “Texas pages.”

Langer can be heard weekday afternoons on Austin City Limits Radio (97.1 KGSR), a station he helped transition from the legendary KGSR to its current brand-sharing agreement with the longest-running music television show in history, PBS’s Austin City Limits. From 2002 to 2016, he was a contributing editor and the music columnist at Esquire—a run that included anchoring eight special music issues, four music/fashion packages, and a rare Q&A with Apple’s Steve Jobs (later documented in Walter Isaacson’s Jobs biography). For six years, Langer also hosted the magazine’s Esquire Minute for SiriusXM. Langer’s print work has appeared in the pages of Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, Bon Appétit, Southern Living, and Billboard. He also hosted the XM music variety show The Armadillo Radio Hour and served as a weekly contributor to NPR’s Bryant Park Project. In March of 2021, his interview with American icon Willie Nelson served as South by Southwest’s keynote address. He lives in Austin.

241 Articles

Music|
October 21, 2015

Cuban Revolution

ZZ Top front man Billy Gibbons talks about playing with Willie, going solo, going Latin, and going beardless (not).

Music|
December 30, 2014

Texas Albums to Look Forward to in 2015

No shortage of Texans have been popping up on year-end lists — from veterans like Spoon and Miranda Lambert to relative newcomers like Austin’s Shakey Graves and Denton’s Sarah Jaffe. And while it is clearly too early to guess who might wind up making

Music|
October 6, 2014

President of Immortal Fun

Alejandro Rose-Garcia—formerly best known as the character, the Swede, on NBC's "Friday Night Lights"—wants to yank fans around with his second album, “And the War Came," an unpredictable mix of solo ballads and louder, multi-instrumental music.

Music|
March 12, 2014

Golden Girl

East Texas native Kacey Musgraves’s best-selling debut has made some Nashville establishment types pretty nervous. But she’s not sure what all the fuss is about.

Music|
November 19, 2013

Quesada, Sera

The founder of the Grammy-winning Grupo Fantasma is striking out on his own. For his next act, will he remake Latin music again?

Music|
October 14, 2013

Getting to Know Mr. Rogers

Kenny Rogers, who has a new album, ‘You Can’t Make Old Friends,' talks about country versus pop, choosing duet partners, and never letting the audience down.

Music|
March 9, 2013

SXSW: Eight Must-See Texas Acts

After last year’s South by Southwest, post-festival talk focused largely on a pair of superstars. It’s not every day that Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band and Jay-Z drop into Texas to play relatively intimate venues. Meanwhile, nearly 2,000 other acts were showcased, including fun., Ed Sheeran and the

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